Dictoria Ibtstor^ of the
Counties of Enolanfc
EDITED BY WILLIAM PAGE, F.S.A.
A HISTORY OF
BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
VOLUME II
THE
VICTORIA HISTORY
OF THE COUNTIES
OF ENGLAND
BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
LONDON
ARCHIBALD CONSTABLE
AND COMPANY LIMITED
This History is issued to Subscribers only
By Archibald Constable & Company Limited and.
printed by Eyre & Spottiswoode Limited
H.M. Printers of London
INSCRIBED
TO THE MEMORY OF
HER LATE MAJESTY
QUEEN VICTORIA
WHO GRACIOUSLY GAVE
THE TITLE TO AND
ACCEPTED THE
DEDICATION OF
THIS HISTORY
THE
VICTORIA HISTORY
OF THE COUNTY OF
BUCKINGHAM
EDITED BY
WILLIAM PAGE, F.S.A
VOLUME TWO
LONDON
ARCHIBALD CONSTABLE
AND COMPANY LIMITED
1908
DA
670
Bs Ve
v/,2
CONTENTS OF VOLUME TWO
PACI
Dedication ............... v
Contents ............... ix
List of Illustrations and Map* . xiii
Editorial Note .............. iv
Romano-British Buckinghamshire . By Miss S. S. SMITH, Oxford Honours School of Eng-
lish Literature ....... i
Ancient Earthworks . . . .By GEORGE CLINCH, F.S.A. SCOT., F.G.S. . . .21
Social and Economic History . . By Miss C. JAMISON, Oxford Honours School of
Modern History . . . . . . -37
Table of Population, 1801-1901 By GEORGE S. MINCHIN 94
Industries By Miss C. JAMISON, Oxford Honours School of
Modern History
Introduction ...... ....... 103
Lace-making .............. 106
Wooden Ware and Chair-making . . . . . . . . . .109
Paper-making ... 1 1 1
Tanning and Shoe-making . . . . . . . . . . .112
Straw-plaiting . . . . . . . . . . . . . • 1 1 3
Bricks, Tiles, and Pottery . . . . . . . . . . . -114
Bell- Foundries . . . . (By ALFRED HINEAGI COCKS, M.A., F.S A.) . .116
Iron-Foundries, Shipbuilding, and
Railway Works ............ .126
Needle-making -1*7
Textile Industries ........... . .128
Forestry By the REV. J. C Cox, LL.D., F.S.A. . . .131
Schools By A. F. LEACH, M.A., F.S.A.
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . '. . -145
Eton College 147
The Royal Latin School, Buck-
ingham 207
Royal Grammar School, High
Wycombe . 210
Stony Stratford Grammar School . . . . . . . . . .212
Amersham Grammar School . . . . . . . . . . .213
Sir William Borlase's School,
Marlow . . . . . . . . . . . . . .214
Aylesbury Grammar School . . . . . . . . . . .215
Wycombe Abbey School . . . . . . . . . . . .216
The County High School for
Girls, High Wycombe 217
Wolverton County School . . . . . . . . . . ...218
Elementary Schools founded
before 1 800 v . . . .218
ix i •>
CONTENTS OF VOLUME TWO
Sport Ancient and Modern . . Edited by E. D. CUMING
Foxhounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . .223
The Old Berkeley Hunt . By O. P. SEROCOLD 223
The Whaddon Chase . . By E. D. CUMING 227
Stag Hunting .... „ ........ 228
The Royal Buckhounds 228
Lord Rothschild's Stag-
hounds . . . . . . . . . . . . .228
Earl Carrington's Blood-
hounds . ............. 229
Harriers. . . . By E. D. CUMING ....... 229
Beagles ..... „ ........ 230
Otterhounds .... „ ........ 230
Coursing. . . . By J. W. BOURNE ....... 230
Racing . . . . . By E. D. CUMING . . . . . . .230
Flat Racing . . . . . . . . . . . . .230
Steeplechasing . . . . . . . . . . . . .232
Shooting . . . . -By COL. ALFRED GILBEV, J.P. . . . . -233
Angling By C. H. COOK, M.A 236
Cricket . . . . -By SIR HOME GORDON, BART. ..... 239
Golf By A. J. ROBERTSON ...... 240
Rowing (Henley Regatta) . . By THEODORE A. COOK, M.A., F.S.A. . . . 240
Athletics . . . . By J. E. FOWLER-DIXON . . . . . .243
Topography ..... General descriptions and manorial descents compiled
under the superintendence of the General Editor ;
Architectural descriptions by J. MURRAY KENDALL
and S. F. BECKE LANE, under the superintendence of
C. R. PEERS, M.A., F.S.A. ; Heraldic drawings and
blazon by the REV. E. E. DORLING, M.A.; Charities,
from information supplied by J. W. OWSLEY, I.S.O.,
late Official Trustee of Charitable Funds
The Three Hundreds of Aylesbury General descriptions and manorial descents by Miss
(Risborough, Stone, Aylesbury) C. JAMISON, Oxford Honours School of Modern
History
Introduction ............. 245
Risborough Hundred 247
Bledlow with Bledlow
Ridge . . . . 247
Horsenden . . . . . . . . . . . -253
Monks Risborough ........... 256
Princes Risborough ........... 26o
Stone Hundred ............. 367
Cuddington . 267
Dinton with Ford and
Upton . . 271
Haddenham . . ... ... 281
Great Hampden 2g7
Little Hampden . . . 291
x
CONTENTS OF VOLUME TWO
PACK
Topography (continueJ)
The Three Hundreds of Aylesbury (cmAnueif)
Stone Hundred (cuitixueJ)
Hartwell 293
Great Kimble • 298
Little Kimble 303
Stone 307
Aylesbury Hundred 31*
Alton Clinton . . 312
Bierton (with Broughton) . . . . . . . . . .3x0
Buckland . . • 327
EIle»borough 331
Halton 339
Hulcott 342
Lee . . 345
Great Missenden . (By Miss M. E. SEEBOHU, Hist. Tripos) . . . 347
Little Missenden . ( „ ) . . 354
Stoke Mandeville 360
Weston Turville 365
XI
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
PACK
High Wycombe. By A. R. QUINTON . Fnnt'ufiece
Romano-British Buckinghamshire : —
Little Brickhill : Plan 5
Castle Thorpe : Armillae 6
Crendon : Sarcophagus containing three Urns ........ 7
Great Horwood : Silver Spoon, &c. ...... full-page plate, facing 8
Latimer : Plan of Roman Villa ........... 9
Stone : Plan showing Sites of Roman Remains ........ IO
„ Sections of a Cavity containing Roman Remains . . . . . . 1 1
Tingewick : Plan of Roman Foundations . . . . . . . . .13
„ Roman Objects . . . . . . . . . . 14
ft »> i» ...........15
Wycombe : Plan of Roman Settlement . . . . . . . . .16
„ „ Town, showing Roman Sites . . . . . . . .17
„ „ Roman Villa . . .18
Ancient Earthworks : —
Bow Brickhill : ' Danesborough ' .......... SI
Cholesbury Camp ............. 23
Hedgerley : Bulstrode Park 25
Monks Risborough : Pulpit Wood . . . . . . . . . 2 5
West Wycombe ............. 26
Castle Thorpe 27
High Wycombe : Castle Hill 28
Little Kimble : Cymbeline's Mount . . . . . . . . . .28
Typical Examples of Homestead Moats in Buckinghamshire . . . . . .31
Great Missendcn : Camp in Bray's Wood . . . . . . . . -33
Industries : —
Inscriptions, &c., on Bells ........... 120-4
Topography : —
Bledlow Church : Plan 250
The Tower from the South . . . )
„ A Capital in the South Arcade of the Nave \ ' **** #*>*** * 5 •
Monks Risborough Church : Plan . 258
„ „ „ Interior looking East . . . full-page plate, facing 258
Princes Risborough : The Market Place 261
„ „ Church Street 263
„ „ Church : Window in South Aisle . )
I . full-page plate, facmg 266
„ „ Panelling in the Manor House . J
Cuddington Church from the South-east ......... 268
Plan . 269
xiii
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
PAGE
Topography (continued)
Dinton Hall : The Staircase .272
„ Upper Waldridge ............ 273
„ Church : South Doorway of Nave
„ ... -, . , „ • full-page plate, facing 278
Cuddmgton : Tynngham House . . )
Haddenham Church from the South-east . . . . . . . . .282
Great Hampden ; Hampden House : The I4th-Century Doorway . )
™ \ TK w i v w I fM-page plate, facing 288
„ Church : The Nave looking West . . . J
Little Hampden Church : The North Porch . . . . . . . .292
Hartwell House : The Entrance Front ......... 293
„ „ Entrance Porch on North Front . )
PTL i«_ • r • full-page plate, facing 294
„ „ The Tapestry Room . . . )
„ » Plan ... ...... 295
Great Kimble : I Jin-Century Building now used as a Barn ...... 298
Stone Church : Plan . . . . . . . . . . . .310
>, „ North Arcade of Nave ..... full-page plate, facing 310
Aston Clinton Church : The Sedilia . )
Bierton Church : Nave looking East . } ' ' J&+V t**,fi**g 3i«
„ „ from the North . . . . . . . . . .320
» „ Plan ............ 325
Ellesborough Church : Croke Monument )
Hulcott Church: South Aisle looking West } ' ' fa»-P*t' Placing ^(>
„ Stairs of the Manor House ...... full-page plate, facing 342
Little Missenden Church from the South-east . . . . . . . -354
„ „ The Manor House from the Churchyard . . . . . -356
„ „ Church : Plan . . . . . . . . . . -358
Great Missenden Church : Nave looking East ")
Stoke Mandeville Church : Interior looking East j ' ' fa1'^' P^te, facing 362
Weston Turville Church : The Font . . )
„..._,.}• . . . full-page plate, facing 370
„ „ „ Piscina in Chancel J
i, ,, „ from the South-east . . . . . . . .371
LIST OF MAPS
Roman Map . ............ faf;a& ,
Ancient Earthworks Map ............. 21
Index Map to the Hundreds of Buckinghamshire ........ „ 245
» » Three Hundreds of Aylesbury (Stone, Risborough, and Aylesbury) . . 246
xiv
EDITORIAL NOTE
THE Editor wishes to express his indebtedness to Prof. F.
Haverfield, M.A., LL.D., F.S.A., for reading the proofs
of the article on the Romano-British Remains of the
county ; to the late Mr. I. Chalkley Gould, F.S.A., for
suggestions regarding the article on Earthworks ; to
Mr. William Crouch, clerk of the peace of the county,
and Mr. A. J. Clarke, town clerk of High Wycombe,
for information supplied to the author of the article on
the Social and Economic History ; to the Earl Howe,
G.C.V.O. ; Mr. G. Laurence Gommc, F.S.A. ; Mr. A.
Heneage Cocks, M.A., F.S.A. ; Rev. G. Blamire Brown,
M.A. ; Mr. A. E. W. Charsley ; Lieut.-Colonel L. E.
Goodall, D.L., J.P. ; Mr. A. Lasenby Liberty, D.L.,
J.P. ; and Mr. W. Rose for information as to the history
and descent of manors, and to Mr. A. Heneage Cocks
and the proprietors of the Reliquary for illustrations.
XV
A HISTORY OF
BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
KOMAN MAP
OF
BUCKINGHAM
o
OXFORD
Reference HenleyonThan.es
I Villages &.cA denoting permanent
A Villas &.c: J civilized occupation.
4- Burial.
• Miscellaneous Finds ; not generally denoting civilized occupation. WindsorJ
-^ Roman Roads.
" Doubtful RofTv&n Roads.
ROMANO-BRITISH
BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
THE county of Buckingham partakes of the essential characteristics
of the midland counties, and shares in that lack of striking phy-
sical features which especially marks this part of England. It is
traversed by no great rivers or high hills, the Chilterns consti-
tuting its highest range, and, with the exception of the extreme southern
border where the River Thames divides the county from Berkshire, is
unusually artificial in the position of its boundaries. Hence, taken as an
item in the Roman Province of Britain, it is comparatively unimportant. It
is difficult in describing its Roman remains to satisfy the demands which a
county history necessarily makes, and to separate the county district from
surrounding areas, or to evolve any history of these remains. Buckingham-
shire constituted in Roman times a small district in that part of Britain which
may be described as the Lowlands. The greater Roman highways for the
most part run outside the county. It is only in the extreme north-east that
one of these traverses it, and that only for a few miles, where Watling Street
runs through Fenny Stratford and Stony Stratford. As a natural corollary
to this, there were no towns of any importance throughout the district,
nothing, in fact, larger than the posting station at Magiovintum on Watling
Street. The Roman remains for the most part participate in the undistin-
guished character of the physical features of the county, and there is very
little which can throw light on the character and customs of the former
inhabitants.
With the exception of a few isolated sites, at Olney in the extreme
north, at Mentmore in the east, and at High Wycombe, Latimer, and Great
Missenden in the south, these remains fall into lines along the course of the
roads or tracks in the county.
Thus, we have those near to the course of Watling Street, at Stony
Stratford, Shenley, and a little distance from it, at Haversham and Castle
Thorpe. There is another rough line of remains along the modern road
passing through Buckingham and Fenny Stratford, consisting of those at
Buckingham, Thornborough, Whaddon Chase, Bletchley, and Fenny Strat-
ford, which last stands on Watling Street.
The third line constitutes the Roman branch-way from Alcester to
Magiovintum and passes through Bicester, Steeple Claydon, and Winslow,
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
terminating at Little Brickhill ; and the last line follows the course of the
British way which runs in two parallel lines known as the Upper and Lower
Icknield Way.
With regard to these remains there are two facts to be specially
noticed. There are no traces of military occupation. There are few villas,
and these, where they do occur, are unimportant, and lie away from the
track of the roads.
The villas are insignificant in character, few in number, and, as would
be expected from their position in the district, show no signs of wealth or
luxury. They point rather to habitation by a poor people whose occupation
was chiefly pastoral, as would be expected in low-lying lands. The traces of
any local industry are extremely scanty, consisting simply of three isolated
relics — the melting crucible and compasses at Tingewick, the steelyard weight
at Haversham, and the kiln at Stone — and these indicate the satisfaction of
individual needs rather than the establishment of any general industry.
The villa at High Wycombe and the burial, apparently that of a woman, at
Weston Turville alone raise doubts concerning the theory as to the poverty of
the inhabitants of this district. The villa, by its size, and the burial, in the
costly character of some of the relics, point to wealth possessed by the owners
of two individual properties. Probably the valley of High Wycombe, in
which the villa was situated, tended to the production at least of agricultural
wealth.
The one great exception to the general lack of individual interest or
importance is the pit at Stone. This is quite unusual in its characteristics
(vuk Index). The orderly nature of the remains found within it, together
with the shape of the pit, has led many archaeologists to the conclusion
that it was made especially for purposes of sepulture, and was not merely a
rubbish hole, as are the majority of the somewhat similar pits which have
now and again been described as sepulchral. It has been thought, indeed,
to have been a rough columbarium, resembling in its general attributes those
at Rome. It is compared by Akerman l with the pits at Ewell, near Epsom,
and others in the Isle of Thanet.
THE ROADS
Watling Street. — Of the four great Roman roads mentioned in the Itinerary
of Antoninus, only one passes through Buckinghamshire. This is given in
the Itinerary as running from Luguvallium (Carlisle) ad portum Ritupis (Rich-
borough). Of this road the part between Uriconium (Wroxeter) and Rich-
borough is generally known as Watling Street, and the part which here
concerns us is that small portion running from Durocobrivae (Dunstable) to
Lactodurum (Towcester), across a part of Buckinghamshire which can only
be called its north-eastern protuberance. The Roman character of this road
is testified with much certainty, both by literary and archaeological evidence.
The distances given in the Itinerary — from Lactodurum XII m.p.m., from
Magiovintum XVII m.p.m., from Durocobrivae XII m.p.m. — coincide with
the distances between the modern Towcester, Little Brickhill, and Dunstable.
1 Arch, rxxii, 451.
2
ROMANO-BRITISH BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
For once antiquaries are in agreement as to its course, which Lysons* de-
scribes in the following passage : —
The Waiting Street enters the county with the modern Irish Road, at the 42nd mile-
stone, and proceeds perfectly straight through Little Brickhill, Fenny Stratford and Stony
Stratford, at which last town it crosses the Ouse into Northamptonshire ; all traces of the
Roman causeway are of course obliterated by the present turnpike road, but no doubt seems
to be entertained of its line, whatever difference of opinion there may be in determining
the sites of the Itinerary stations upon it.
Though all actual traces of the Roman causeway may have been obliter-
ated, there exists almost certain evidence of its course, in the straight boundary
line between the parishes which lie along the route between Little Brickhill
and Stony Stratford. Moreover, the names Stony Stratford, Fenny Stratford,
and Old Stratford speak of a Roman origin. The archaeological evidence is
further strengthened by the discovery of what are certainly Roman remains at
these places ; of foundations in the Auld Fields near Fenny Stratford, of an
: urn and bust of Roman workmanship at Little Brickhill, and the remains of a
villa, and an urn containing silver plates, etc., near Stony Stratford.
But though there can be no question as to the course of Watling Street
through the county, yet there has been much dispute with regard to the
position of the Itinerary stations upon it. First as to Lactodurum. There
can be little real doubt that the modern Towcester is built upon the site of
this Roman station. But again and again we hear that Stony Stratford marks
the site, and Stukeley, with his usual ingenuity, has derived the name Stony
Stratford from ' Lactorodum,' which he takes as the name of the Roman
station.
From Lactodurum we pass on to Magiovintum and Durocobrivae.
With regard to these there can be little doubt that the Roman stations were
at or near the modern Fenny Stratford and Dunstable, respectively, a con-
clusion which has been well worked out by Akerman.8 Indeed, it is only
by placing the sites thus that the distances can be made to coincide with the
distances given in the Itinerary. As to the precise situation of Magiovintum,
however, many surmises have been raised, and Fenny Stratford and Little
Brickhill have run the gauntlet of antiquarian opinion. Fenny Stratford
has usually had the pre-eminence, for Leland, alone, of the antiquaries before
the present century, places Magiovintum at Little Brickhill. It seems now
better established, however, that Magiovintum should be placed at or near
Little Brickhill, and that the site near Fenny Stratford has less probability.
The other Roman, or possibly Roman, roads are four in number, and are
for the most part merely branch roads.
Road from Bicester to Towcester, or to a point "within some little distance of it.* —
This road, starting from Alcester, runs north-east and south-west between
Fringford and Stratton Audley, through Newton Purcell, and enters Buck-
inghamshire a little to the north of Barton Hartshorn.
Here it becomes coincident with the north-west boundary of the county,
proceeds to Little Tingewick, where its course is marked by a villa and a
' M agna Britannia, i, 483. ' Jrtb. xxvii, 96.
4 Dr. Plot, Nat. Hist. ofOxon. x, I 3 ; Stukeley, I tin. Curioium, 18, 21, &c. ; Rec. of Bucks. (Arch. Soc. of
Bucks.), iv, 154; Burgess, Raman Roads in Bucks.; Lytons, Hist, of Bucks, iii, 483 ; O.S. xxvii, NE. SE.,
etc. ; f.C.H. ttorthants. i.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
considerable number of remains. From here it passes to Water Stratford
where the name again testifies to Roman origin, runs near Stowe, leaves the
county near Lillingstone Lovell apparently on its way to Towcester, the
Lactodurum of the Romans, where, or near where, it joins the Watlmg
Street.
Road from Grandborough to Akeman Street.* — Mr. Haverfield has called
attention to a possible road which would probably run into the Akeman
Street. It began near to where the Claydon brook forks close to the Grand-
borough Road Station and followed probably the line of a boundary between
the parishes of Grandborough and Hogsham to the place where the roads
from Grandborough village, Grandborough Road Station, and Waddesdon
meet. It thence follows the road to Waddesdon for about four miles, forming
the boundary of various parishes.
Akeman Street. — This road runs from Alcester, where it is joined by
another road (also called Akeman Street) which runs from Alcester to Ciren-
cester. There are branches of the Akeman Street given by Stukeley and
Dr. Plot, but little probability can be attached to these branch roads. Akeman
Street proceeds by way of Waddesdon into Buckinghamshire, running
through Aylesbury,6 where Roman coins have been discovered. There it
takes a straight course through Aston Clinton and leaves the county west
of Tring.
The Icknield Way. — It is fairly certain that this road must be considered
of British extraction. In its general character it is quite unlike a Roman
road.7 Mr. Haverfield thinks that some portion of it was employed as a road
by the Romans, but that it was not Roman in its origin (i-in. O.S. Bucks.,
237. 238).
TOPOGRAPHICAL INDEX
ASTON CLINTON. — A Roman amphora was discovered in the spring of 1871 on the Vetches Farm.
It was buried on its side in the large field immediately opposite the farm-house, about 2 ft.
from the surface, filled with burnt wood and earth. It is 2 ft. 10 in. in height, 2 ft. 10 in. in
circumference, and is now in the possession of Mr. W. L. Lutton, of North Church [Rec. of
Bucks, iv, 147 ; Bucks. 25-in. O.S. xxxiv.]. Near Aston Hill is the supposed site of a
Roman or British encampment. In a cottage garden, not many years ago, a coin of
Vespasian (A.D. 70-9) and one of Hadrian (A. D. 117-38) were discovered. They are now in
the possession of Mr. Fowler, of the ' White Hart,' Aylesbury.
AYLESBURY. — Roman pottery, spindles, etc., were dug up in Granville Street ; they are now ex-
hibited in the museum at Aylesbury. Silver and copper coins were also shown in the Loan
Exhibition at Buckingham, 1855 [Catalogue in Rec. of Bucks, i].
BIERTON. — Part of a large urn 15 in. in diameter, 12 in. in depth, said to be Roman, was dis-
covered here 3 ft. from the surface. It was imperfectly burnt, and had a rude attempt at orna-
mentation. Human remains and coins were found in a field to the west of the Red Lion Inn
[Rec. of Bucks, iv, 224]. Human remains and Roman urns were also found in a garden on the
east side of a road to the east of the Red Lion Inn [25~in. O.S. xxviii, 2].
BLETCHLEY. — At the Dove Cote Farm, on the Shenley estate, near Bletchley, portions of a tessellated
pavement, bricks and other indications of a Roman villa were discovered by Mr. Grimwood
[Haverfield, ' Quarterly Notes on Roman Brit.' Antlq. xxxvii].
BRICKHILL, LITTLE. — Near Fenny Stratford in the parish of Little Brickhill a small intaglio (ex-
hibited by Mr. Byles, of Boxmoor Station), of pale cornelian, of oval form and small size,
' Bucks, i -in. O.S. 219, 237.
6 Burgess, 'Roman Roads in Bucks.' ; Rec. of Bucks. (Bucks. Arch. Soc.), iv, 154.
' For discussion as to the name vide V.C.H. Norf. i, 287. It crosses the Wading Street at Dunstable,
enters Buckinghamshire a little to the north-west of Dagnall, and is to be clearly traced as far as Ivinghoe.
Thence to Little Kimble, where there is a Roman villa and other remains, its course can only be conjectured,
but from Little Kimble to Bledlow, where it leaves the county, it is again clear.
4
ROMANO-BRITISH BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
engraved with a figure of Jupiter, his right hand extended and his left holding a sceptre, with
an eagle at his feet, was found with an early bronze fibula made in one piece, and a plain
armilla [Proc. Sac. Antiq. (Ser. 2), ii, 60]. The station of Magiovintum has been placed by the
concurrent opinions of antiquaries at Fenny Stratford [Proc. Sac. Antiq. i, 246 ; otherwise, Arch,
xxvii, 96], a conclusion which Mr. Pretty of Northampton thinks is confirmed by the dis-
covery of numerous Roman coins and other remains in its vicinity, more particularly in certain
fields adjoining to and in the neighbourhood of the White Hart Inn ; chief among these were
the figure of an eagle discovered on Little Heath, and coins of Severus Alexander (A.D. 222-
35) ; two third brass of Gordianus Pius (A.D. 238) ; Postumus (A.D. 258-68) ; Tetricus (A.D.
268-73); Valens (A.D. 364-78) ; Claudius Gothicus (A.D. 268-70) [Rtc. of Bucks, v, 154 ; MS.
Min. Soc. Antiq. xxv, 126. Inf. supplied by Mr. W. Bradbrook] ; also a bust of Roman
workmanship [Arch, xxvii, 96]. ' At Fenny Stratford in a place called the Auld-Fields,' says
Lysons, ' foundations of buildings have been found as well as coins' [Hist. Bucks. 483]. The
site of the Roman station of Magiovintum has been placed with more probability at Little
Brickhill on the Watling Street, a short distance from Fenny Stratford.
BRILL. — Roman coins were discovered 14 December 1758 [MS. Min. Soc. Antiq. viii, 98].
There is a square entrenchment described as a ' Roman Camp ' on Muswell Hill [Bucks.
6-in. O.S. xxvi, SE.]. Camden [Brit, ii, 330 (ed. Gough, 1722)] mentions Cold Harbour
fford
8 6
PLAN or LITTLE BRICKHILL
Farm, north-east of Brill, as the site of a Roman town, and he is quoted to this effect by
Stukeley, but there seems no evidence to warrant such a statement, and the name does not
necessarily imply a Roman connexion [Bucks, i-in. O.S. 237].
BUCKINGHAM. — Many Roman coins have been dug up in the vicinity of Buckingham ; a coin of
Antoninus (A.D. 138-61) in 1819 [Lipscomb, Bucks, ii, 547], and in 1741 a copper coin of
Carausius (A.D. 287-93) [MS. Min. Soc. Antiq. iv, 56]. Pottery, coins, implements and
ornaments from Grove Hill Farm, discovered in 1875, were also exhibited at the Loan
Exhibition, Aylesbury, July 1905, by Mr. T. Gardner [Catalogue of Loan Exhibition].
CADMORB END. — In 1877 five Roman coins were discovered here, of Titus (A.D. 79-81), Domitian
(A.D. 81-96), Trajan (A.D. 98-117), Hadrian (A.D. 117-38), Faustina (A.D. 138-41), re-
spectively. They were exhibited in the Loan Exhibition at Aylesbury 1905, by the Rev. R.
Bruce Dickson of Stewkley [Catalogue of Loan Exhibition].
CASTLE THORPE. — In a field called Burtles Hill was found a small black urn containing a pair of
armillae and a silver ring, with twenty silver and about twenty-five large brass coins of the
Upper Empire, ranging from Nero (A.D. 54-68) to Verus (A.D. 166-70), one being a coin of
Antoninus Pius (A.D. 138-61) with Britannia reverse. The coins are now in the possession of
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Mr. F. H. Hughes [Brit. Arch. Assoc. Journ. ii, 352-3 ; Num. Chron. vii, pi. iv.] Bracelets
of the pattern illustrated have been found more than once in England, and can be dated with
precision. They are of base silver, with the terminals slightly expanded to represent serpents
heads, and the hoop engraved with geometrical designs. The serpents' heads may have had
som; religious significance [cf. gold specimen from Backworth, Northumberland, Arch. Journ.
viii, 39]. They were originally in the
Bateman Collection, Lomberdale House,
Derbyshire, but are now in the Bri-
tish Museum. Similar bracelets have
been found near Carlswark, Derbyshire
[Jewitt, Reliq. viii, 113], at Ham
Saltings, Upchurch, Kent, now in the
British Museum with part of another
from Coldham Common, Cambs. [Payne,
Collectanea Cantiana, 74]. The ring
which is set with a cornelian intaglio is
of a type common about A.D. 200
[Journ. Brit. Arch. Assoc. ii, 35 ; Bate-
man Coll., Lomberdale House, Catalogue,
130-1 ; Reliq. xiii, pi. xviii]. Though
a skull and pottery fragments were later
ARMILLAE FROM CASTLE THORPE found on the site, this deposit of about
A.D. 1 70 was evidently a hoard un-
connected with any burial. Mr. Pretty of Northampton, who recorded the find, added that
there was probably a villa at Calverton End near Castle Thorpe, a fact which he deduced from
the discovery of pottery there. Professor Haverfield, however, considers that this is inconclu-
sive. Mr. Pretty's additional note on the subject of the Portway Lane in Castle Thorpe
drew attention to the fact that the name Port does not imply a Roman origin.
COLNBROOK. — Camden [Brit. 327 (ed. Gough, 1722)] wrongly identifies Colnbrook with the
Ponies of Antoninus, because it is at equal distance on both sides from Wallingford and
London, and here the Coin is divided into four channels, which, for the convenience of
travellers, have as many bridges over them [Reynolds, Iter. Brit. (1848), 340].
CRENDON or LONG CRENDON. — In the year 1824 labourers, digging in a field at the north side of
the church near a road named the Angle Way, found the remains of a cemetery near the
supposed site of the castle of the Giffards. The field which contained these remains is of stone
brash, in which each of the urns discovered was embedded separately. The principal objects
found were an urn described as of blue clay, unglazed ; a small portion of another urn, of
large size, 3 ft. in height, diameter at brim 6 in., with handles 5 in. in circumference, joined
to the neck and body of the vessel, which was of coarse yellowish ware, with a reddish tint.
It was quite plain, had the marks of the lathe perfect, and appeared to have been coated with
varnish. Besides ashes and burnt bones, including those of birds, there were also found seven
rings of brass, so much decayed that the stones set in most of them were corroded and de-
stroyed. Two of these had portions of wire attached to them and might have been ear
pendants. There were also found a number of small urns ; eight paterae of Samian ware, each
6J in. in diameter, i£ in. deep, having a small rim ; one stamped OF. L. Q. VIRIL. ; a small
incense pot of the same fabric formed in two half circles, the larger above the smaller, and,
intersecting it, with a circular stamp or cipher at the bottom ; a lamp quite perfect and of
the same ware ; a small sarcophagus containing three small urns all perfect [Lipscomb, Bucks.
i, 212 ; C. R. Smith, Coll. Antiq. iv, 155 ; Letter from G. Lipscomb, Gent. Mag. (1831)].
There was also found at a later date near the site of the former discoveries a pot of small
Roman coins, some of Claudius (A.D. 41-54). The greater number were much corroded. It
is probable that this group of remains is of Roman date, but a further note of Lipscomb
points to the fact that a Saxon interment was made on the site of the Roman one, as some of
the remains which he indicates could not have been Roman. He adds: ' Many skeletons
were found regularly interred, and near them abundant and satisfactory indications of crema-
tion and urn burial ; great quantities of ashes, scoriae and semi-vitrified masses, together with
vast numbers of fragments of urns and other vessels, bones of large quadrupeds and of birds
promiscuously intermingled.'
ELLESBOROUGH. — Foundations of buildings [Lysons, Bucks. 483] and Roman coins have been found
here [Lipscomb, Bucks, ii, 171. Vide Little Kimble].
ETON. — A Roman vase was discovered in 1863-4, 507 yds. north of Barnes Pool Bridge, a little to
the west of the main road from Windsor to Slough. A Roman urn, 21 in. high, and the same
6
ROMANO-BRITISH BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
in extreme diameter was discovered in 1890 about 18 in. below the surface of a field at
Willowbrook, a little to the north of Eton on the way to Slough flnf from Mr
R. P. L. Booker, M.A., F.S.A.].
FOSCOTT. — The following remains from a supposed Roman villa at Foscott were exhibited at the
Loan Exhibition at Buckingham in 1855, by the Rev. W. Lloyd of Lillingstone. Hypocaust
tiles, bone spoons, pin, part of bone pipe, a bronze socket, glass and pottery fragments, a piece
of oak pile, and some glass, also fragments of tessellated pavement [Catalogue of Exhibition,
Rec. of Bucks, i].
HAVERSHAM. — A Roman steelyard weight in form of a woman's head was ploughed up in the parish
of Haversham near Newport Pagnell [Bucks. N. and Q. (1901), 228; Proc. Soc. Antiq.
(Ser. 2), v, 13]. Roman
coins have also been found
here, one a first brass
of Marcus Aurelius (A.D.
l6l-8o) [Journ. Brit.
Arch. Assoc. ii, 355]. Mr.
Pretty of Northampton,
who notes the discovery
of the coins, adds that it
is a significant fact that
the coins found on the
Buckingham side of the
River Tove, among which
those at Haversham are
included, are generally of
earlier date than those
discovered at Cosgrove,
Old Stratford, and Paulers-
pury.
HEDSOR. — The remains of pile
dwellings were discovered
here in 1894, but the ob-
jects accompanying then1,
e.g. spear heads and the
bones of animals, point
to a prc-Roman origin
[Journ Brit. Arch. Assoc.
(Ser. 2), v, 267]. Simi-
lar dwellings have been
found at Cookham in
Berkshire, which is near
Hedsor ]f.C.H. Berks, i,
198, 205].
HITCH AM. — A Roman key, to-
gether with Roman coins,
was found near the pre-
sent Bath road \Journ.
Brit. Arch. Assoc. xxxiii,
206 ; xlix, 176].
HORWOOD, GREAT, AND WINS-
LOW. — A silver drinking-
cup of late Roman work,
of a common form in pot-
tery,
but uncommon in
silver, height 4* in., great- SAICOPHACU. CONTA.N.NG TH«. URN, AT CWNDON
est width 2^ in., was
turned up in a field and broken by the ploughshare, so that the fracture revealed other
objects, some of which had been bent in order to put them into the cup : two silver
spoons, very much bent, having oval bowls decorated with a kind of ribbed or feathery
pattern ; one had the inscription VENERIA VIVAS (compare with this a sepulchral inscription
to Lady Veneria in the Museum at Caerleon). Altogether five spoons were found on this
occasion, and a small pin 2$ in. long, with a flat circular head, closely resembling other
7
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Roman pins in bronze ; a small fibula, showing signs of wear, the type of which is rare
in England ; also a silver ring with octagonal exterior and a blank facet \_Rec. of Bucks, iv,
209 ; Arch. Journ. xxxiii, 357].
HUGHENDEN. — In 1826 an urn containing four small silver coins and three copper ones was turned
up in a field near Hazlemere turnpike-gate ; near this deposit was an arch of flints, supported
by two side walls, about the size of a common grave, not more than 3 ft. long. About it were
several broken Roman tiles, pieces of urns, fragments of unburnt pottery and of what appeared
to be part of a quern [Lipscomb, Hist. Bucks, iii, 583]. It has been suggested that this was a
Roman burying-place, but there is not sufficient evidence for such a conclusion. Yet the
remains are not entirely Roman in character, for a battle-axe was also discovered, which points
to a deposit, perhaps a later one, of Saxon origin. A vase, probably Roman, was also dis-
covered in the excavations at Hughenden Vicarage, 1883. This was exhibited at the Loan
Exhibition at Aylesbury, 1905 [Catalogue of Loan Exhibition].
KIMBLE, GREAT. — Great Kimble stands on the higher track known as the Upper Icknield Way,
to which should probably be assigned a British origin, though it is possible that the road was
here used by the Romans. The following remains were found in a barrow and are very
probably British, although described as Romano-British [Proc. Sac. Antiq. (Ser. 2), xii, 340] :
two urns, the larger of the two in an inverted position with the smaller one resting on its
shoulder, 17 in. in height, containing white powder and a small perforated vessel, which was
possibly an incense cup, these were buried in a shallow grave in the chalk. The lower part
of the grave was covered with black ashes. Lipscomb [Hist. Bucks, ii, 341] also speaks of a
square camp commanding the track of the Icknield Way, on the brow of the hill, south of the
church, at the north-west corner of Pulpit Wood.
KIMBLE, LITTLE. — The remains possibly of a Roman villa were discovered here. Fragments of a
small tessellated pavement were found near the turnpike road, laid in mortar, measuring 4 ft. by
3 ft. Foundations of flint were discovered at the same time, and in the adjoining fields near Great
Kimble, Roman tiles and coins have been occasionally found, and buckles, rings, tiles, tesserae,
and painted plaster, fragments of which were exhibited at the Loan Exhibition at Buckingham,
1855 \_Rec. of Bucks, i, 39; Ibid. 'Catalogue of Exhibition']. The three sites of Great
Kimble, Little Kimble, and Ellesborough are in such close proximity that it is possible the
three together formed one settlement.
LATIMER. — A little to the south-west of Latimer, which is situated on the road from Chenies to
Chesham, is Dell Farm, shut in on two sides by Lane Wood and West Wood. On this
spot there is a slightly-elevated mound, in which Roman tesserae were discovered in 1 834 by
workmen who were employed in diverting the road here, which originally ran between the farm-
house and the river. A few yards to the north-west were four human skeletons with coins
and fragments of earthen vessels deposited near them, which were taken away by a stranger.
The following account of later discoveries is given by the Rev. Bryant Burgess \_Rec. of Bucks.
iii, no. 5, pp. 181-5]. '^n ^63 numerous tesserae of various sizes, pieces of tile and mortar,
with the peculiar pink tinge which is characteristic of Roman manufacture, were found lying
by the side of the road where it was cut thrpugh the mound, and at three inches below the
level of the road a tessellated pavement of coarse red ware.'
Excavations were made in 1864 and are described by Mr. Bryant Burgess. From his
description it appears that a portion of a villa of the corridor type was disclosed, comprising a
range of rooms with a corridor on the north-west 8 ft. 6 in. wide (3, 5 on plan). The corridor
was divided by a wall and doorway, to the south-west of which it ran for 34 ft. and was paved
with flat tiles 16 in. by 12 in., and to the north-east it was traced for 39 ft. and was paved with
red tesserae. There was probably a corridor on the opposite side of the range of rooms, as
fragments of a tessellated floor were discovered at ay a, a, on plan. Room i (see plan)
measured 19 ft. 6 in. by 22 ft. ; the tesserae in the room were I J in. square. The walls were
plastered, and the part remaining was coloured a dull red, but pieces of plaster were found in
the room painted white with a red or green stripe, and some of three different colours. The floor
here, as in the other rooms, was covered with a black powder of decayed wood, with which iron
nails from i^ in. to 5 in. in length were intermingled ; above this was a mass of broken ridge
and flanged tiles, together with large flints and mortar, evidently the remains of the rafters and
roof-tiles. These would perhaps point to the villa having fallen to decay and not having
been destroyed. Room 2, which was 19 ft. 6 in. in length by 9 ft. 3 in. in breadth, com-
municated with room i by a doorway 5 ft. wide, and also by another doorway to room 4.
Possibly it was a vestibule, as it had a doorway 6 ft. wide through the north-east wall. The
floor was of concrete. Room 4 was 19 ft. 6 in. by 12 ft. It was paved with red tesserae, and
contained a considerable quantity of broken pottery and charred wood. Upon the south-west
wall were the remains of colour. Rooms 6 and 10 were only partially traced. A few tesserae
SILVER SPOONS, ETC. FROM GREAT HORWOOD
ROMANO-BRITISH BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
were found in one corner of each, but the ground had been lowered at a previous date and the
floor destroyed. Room No. 7 formed a passage 5 ft. 5 in. wide, with a step at the entrance to
the north-west corridor. It was paved with red tesserae. Room 8 was 19 ft. 6 in. by 1 8 ft. 9 in.
The wall on the south-east was scarcely traceable, but the other walls were in good condition
to the height of i8in. The pavement, the middle of which was destroyed, was of white
tesserae for a width of 27 in. from the wall ; the interior, so far as it remained, had the usual
red pavement, but in the three corners it was continued for some inches into the border.
Room 9 measured 19 ft. 6 in. by 12 ft. 9 in. ; the tesserae of the pavement were mostly red,
with a few white, yellow, and black, which in some cases adhered together in an orna-
mental pattern as they had been laid. Room 1 1 was probably a passage. Another range of
buildings extended to the north-west of room 5, and at f there was a mass of rubble wall with tile
courses, which was traced to a depth of 4 ft. Here a number of small bones of a cat or rabbit
were found. The following articles were found in the villa : — Two brass coins of Constantino
the Great (A.D. 306-37) ; a brazen or copper coin of Tetricus (A.D. 268-73) ; a small British
coin of brass, possibly of the age of Tetricus ; a pin of ivory or very hard bone, carved, in
perfect preservation, except the point, measuring 3-^5 in. ; another pin, of darker colour, and
finer workmanship, imperfect ; a great deal of broken pottery, with a few pieces of Castor
and Samian ware ; a piece of stag's horn ; oyster shells and whelks, the former in considerable
PLAN OF ROMAN VILLA DISCOVERED AT LATIMEK. Scale 20 ft. to I in.
quantities ; pointed pieces of iron, "]\ in. and \\ in. in length ; pieces of lead and a large
quantity of iron nails ; a small piece of a glass vessel and fragments of window-glass ; flue-tiles,
mostly broken, measuring 15^ in. by i6Jin. by 4^ in., one nearly perfect, ornamented on two
sides with a pattern, the rest merely scored on the wider side with a comb ; flanged roof-tiles,
measuring 16 in. by 12 in. at the broader and lojin. at the narrower end, but the measure-
ments vary considerably in different tiles ; these, together with ridge-tiles measuring about
15 in. by 7^ in. by i£ in. were found mostly in a broken state, overlying the pavements in all
parts of the building [Rec. of Bucks, iii (5), 181, et seq.].
LEE. — Roman remains from Bray's Wood, near Lee, were exhibited at the Loan Exhibition
at Buckingham, July 1855. There is a square entrenchment at Bray's Wood [Bucks. 6-in.
O.S. xxxviii, NE. ; Rec. of Bucks, vi, 297 ; Lipscomb, Bucks, ii, 359].
MARLOW. — On 4 May 1780 two small bronze human figures, supposed to be of women, were
found near Marlow [MS. Min. Soc. Antiq. xvii, 37]. In February 1779 a bronze Roman
fibula was also found near here [MS. Min. Soc. Antiq. xvi, 213].
MENTMORE. — Remains were discovered here which possibly indicate a Saxon interment on a Roman
site, though the coins, which are the only indication of a Roman origin, may have accompanied
the Saxon burial [Prac. Soc. Antiq. iii, 72]. In 1852 there were found a spear -head (obviously
a Saxon relic), a bronze clasp, a coin of Constans or Constantius, several bones of animals,
and Roman coins [Bucks. 6-in. O.S. xxiv, SE.]. At a date previous to this a cup-shaped
fibula and an ' ornament probably from a soldier's belt ' were revealed [drch. xxxv, 380].
2 9 2
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
MISSENDEN, GREAT. — Fragments of Roman pottery have been dug up to the south-east of the village
[Rec. of Bucks, vi, 297].
NASH LEE. — At this place is said to be the site of a Roman villa [6-in. O.S. Bucks, xxxiii, SE.
par. Ellesborough]. The following extract is given in the Name Book of the original Ordnance
Survey of Buckinghamshire, dated 1896-8 : — ' No visible remains of this ancient building now
exist, but undoubted evidence of its former existence were discovered by the late G. S. Stone,
Esq. In the month of September 1858 the foundations of a Roman Villa, together with Roman
tiles and pieces of Roman pottery, including the greater portion of two urns and two bronze
coins, one on the foundation and the other a short distance off, were discovered by this gentle-
man and presented by him to the Bucks. Archaeological Society.'
OAKLEY. — Roman pottery and coins were found in a field on Ixhill Farm, midway between Oakley
and Worminghall, also part of a flue-tile. In 1892 excavations were made to remove some
large stones which interfered with ploughing, and several cart-loads of stone were dug up and
removed, which, it has been suggested, point to the existence of some Roman building here
[Journ. of the Berks. Bucks, and Oxon. Assoc. iv, 46].
OLNEY. — Silver coins were found in the neighbourhood between the Lavendon and Warrington
Roads in a field called Ashfurlongs, north of Olney ; three of Gratian (A.D. 375-84) or
Gallienus (A.D. 253-68), Victorinus (A.D. 265-7), and Allectus (293-6), respectively,
still remain at Olney [jfourn. Brit. Arch. Assoc. iii, 255 ; 25-in. O.S. ii, 16]. In the Journ.
of the Berks. Bucks, and Oxon. Assoc. (April 1904, p. 26) are mentioned coins dating from Nero
(A.D. 54-68) to Constantino (A.D. 306-37). One fragment of Samian, some gray and black
ware, and a bronze figure of Mercury were also found.
PRINCES RISBOROUGH. — ' Coins have been found at Princes Risborough ' [Lysons, Bucks. 483], and
others were discovered on Risborough Top, Chiltern Hills, three-quarters of a mile east of
Princes Risborough [25-in. O.S. xxxvii, 7].
STEEPLE CLAYDON. — 'In 1620 an earthen pot full of brass money bearing the stamp, name, and
picture, some of Carausius (A.D. 287-93), some of Allectus (293-6) was found under the
root of a tree ... by the great pond there in the wood of the worthy knight Sir Thomas
Challoner ' [White Kennet, Paroch. Antiq. Bucks, ii, 419].
STONE. — Many antiquities, probably from a Roman cemetery, have been found here. On the north
side of the road, immediately opposite the vicarage, in December 1 87 1, a natural hill of sand was
excavated, and what was apparently a Roman kiln, in the shape of a basin, lined with burnt
clay, 4 ft. in diameter inside, 2^ ft. in depth, the top i ft. from the surface, therefore whole
depth 3^ ft., was found. It was filled with sand, charcoal, and a great quantity of coarse broken
SCALE. 6 '" I MILE .
MILE.
PLAN OP STONE, SHOWING SITES OF ROMAN REMAINS
10
NORTH t» SOUTH
EAST h WEST
NATURAL
SURTACC
BASEMENT
ROCK
YELLOW
SAND
5 10
SECTIONS or A CAVITY CONTAINING ROMAN REMAINS, FOUND AT
STONE, BUCKS.
ROMANO-BRITISH BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
pottery [Rtc. of Bucks, iv, 122 ; Journ. Brit. Arch. Assoc. (Ser. 2), ii, 116]. A pit or well
was discovered in the field where the County Lunatic Asylum now stands. At a depth of 8 ft.
the workmen came to a stratum of hard blue stone, a foot in thickness, through which a circular
hole had been made. Im-
mediately beneath a chamber
was found in which were dis-
covered many fragments of
cinerary urns made of dark
slate-coloured clay, some of
which contained human
bones, the bones of some
large animal, and portions
of burnt oak and beech.
Through the centre of the
chamber the perpendicular
shaft was continued for 1 1 ft.
to another and thicker stra-
tum of rock. Beneath this,
again, a second chamber was
discovered and cleared out.
The contents were similar,
with the addition of the skull,
teeth, and one horn of an
ox, a portion of skin, tanned
and preserved by the action
of the sulphurous acid of
the blue clay below, and
wood burnt, unburnt and partially consumed, twelve urns of various forms and sizes, two
bronze rings, apparently formed for armillat, of the rudest construction, 2j in. in diameter,
and a bucket with iron hoops and elects for the handle, which could not be found. About
50 yds. north-west of the pit, 2 ft. below the surface, were a double-handled urn, one of smaller
size, an urn with a single handle, and a smaller one of dark clay. Thirty yards south-west of
the pit were several fragments of urns, 2 ft. below the surface, of the coarsest fabric [Journ.
Brit. Arch. Assoc. xx, 276-7 ; Arch, xxxiv, 26 ; xlvi, 447 ; Proc. Soc. Antiq. ii, 101 ; Arch.
Journ. viii, 95]. Near the same spot were two coins in middle brass of Domitian (A.D. 81-96)
(reverse, fig. of Spes) and Vespasian (A.D. 70-9) (reverse, altar between letters S.C.).
STONY STRATFORD. — A Roman villa has been discovered in the parish of Paulerspury near Stony
Stratford, close to the course ofWatling Street. In 1850 it was recorded that 'a fine tessellated
pavement is already cleared ' \lllm. Land. News, 1850, i, 214]. It has perhaps been sufficiently
proved that Towcester, and not Stony Stratford, occupies the site of Lactodurum, though the
opinion hitherto held by the majority of antiquaries was that the latter marked the site of the
Roman town. An urn found in 1835 was exhibited in the Loan Exhibition at Aylesbury,
1905. In 1789 Roman silver plates and other articles in silver and brass were found in an
urn at Windmill Field near Stony Stratford [MS. Min. Soc. Antiq. xxxiii, 306, June 1813].
Lysons describes them in the MS. Minutes as ' a considerable number of plates of silver, of a base
quality in form of leaves, much resembling those at Barkway, together with many other articles
of silver and brass of various shapes,' and suggests that they were parts of Roman military
standards. Lysons states that the following inscription is on one of the silver plates, which,
though very slightly cut, may be read thus : —
DEO IOVI ET VOLGA
VASSINVS
CVM VELLINT
ME CONSACRATVM
CONSERVAAE PRO
MISI DENARIOS SEX
PRO VOTO
The remainder of the last line is obliterated except the final three letters, which seem to be
LIT. Drawings, together with the most remarkable of the antiquities, were exhibited to the
Society of Antiquaries. The originals are now in the British Museum and have been copied
by Prof. Hubncr (Corp. Inter. Lot. vii, Nos. 80, 81, 82). Lysons mentions a thin piece of
brass worked in a conical form with several appendages of the same metal fastened to it with
II
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
chains, which he suggests was fixed at the top of the staff. Other objects he describes as
possibly ' the pi/ae, sometimes styled circuit, and clypei, which are said by Isidorus to have been
just added by Augustus.' These were of brass, with apparently plates of silver soldered to
them on one side. They were soldered together, and probably had rings by which they
were suspended to the staff. Several thin plates of silver in the form of leaves were found,
two of which had scratched on them an inscription, which may be read DEO MARTI SANCTO,
and others had figures of Mars standing in front of a temple, Mars and Victory, and Apollo.
Two brass fibulae were found at the same time.
TAPLOW. — In a mound or barrow near the old parish church objects in gold, silver, bronze, glass,
and pottery were found. They were of Anglo-Saxon date, except some slight early remains
of Samian and other pottery [Proc. Sue. Antiq. (Ser. 2), x, 19 ; Journ. Brit. Arch. Asm. xl, 63,
an].
THORNBOROUGH. — Bronze vases, a cinerary urn of glass, a bronze lamp with a crescent on the
handle resembling one found near Halesworth in Suffolk, and other remains were discovered
in a tumulus on the estate of the Duke of Buckingham, and exhibited at the Loan Exhibition
at Buckingham by the Hon. Richard Neville [Arch. Journ. vii, 82 ; xii, 276].
TINGEWICK. — The remains of a Roman villa were found in the parish of Tingewick, which lies
about two miles westward from Buckingham, and near to the ancient road from Bicester,
through Stratton Audley and Water Stratford in the direction of Towcester. The field in
which the discoveries were made is called ' Stollidge,' and is more than a quarter of a mile
from the village. The foundations stood on the brow of a hill, which slopes in a north-
westerly direction towards the River Ouse, about a quarter of a mile below Tingewick Mill,
a situation unusual for the Romans, who generally chose a southern slope. The first discovery
was made in 1860, and the excavation was continued in 1862. The foundations had in places
been disturbed, and were too fragmentary to give a complete plan of the building ; but from
the plan and description made at the time the main building seems to have been a villa of the
corridor type, lying east and west, the corridor running along the north side. The total
length of the house was about 93 ft., and the width 27 ft., inside measurements, the rooms being
about 12 ft. wide, and the walls about 2 ft. thick. To the south of this building, about
106 ft. away, was a smaller one, measuring externally 22 ft. 4 in. by 12 ft. It was divided into
two apartments, the larger of which, to the west, measured 1 1 ft. 6 in. by 9 ft. 6 in., and had
walls on the south and west sides 18 in. to 20 in. thick, and on the north 12 in. thick. The
smaller apartment was divided into two, the larger part of which was 6 ft. 6 in. by 4 ft. 10 in.,
and the smaller 3 ft. loin, by i ft. loin. The latter, which was apparently a tank, was
surrounded by strong masonry, on the south 18 in., on the east 2 ft. loin., on the north 2 ft.,
and on the west 3 ft. thick. The floor, which was 1 7 in. below the ground level, was, together with
the sides, plastered with mortar said to be hardened by fire. It had a moulding 2^ in. wide carried
round the bottom, and a drain or flue 5^ in. by 6 in., sunk a little below the level, and passing
through the outer wall in the lowest course of the foundation, the top of the drain being
formed by one tile 15 in. long by i^ in. thick. The drain, on passing out of the building,
curved in a westerly direction and ran down the hill. The floor of the larger apartment was
paved with tiles, and was 13 in. below the bottom of the tank and 2 ft. 6 in. below the prob-
able level of the smaller apartment. A number of flue-tiles were found within and with-
out the walls, which suggested to Mr. Beesley the idea that this small building was a bath ;
but it seems more likely to have been a workshop of some kind, possibly a part of one of the
small dye-works which seem to have been a feature of Roman Britain. Southward of the drain
above mentioned, about 42 ft. distant, were traces of another drain or ditch running parallel to
it. About 78 ft. westward of the corridor house was a third drain on the slope of the hill, which
is said to have contained several circular holes or rubbish pits, which were excavated to a depth of
about 120 ft. From this last ditch the greater number of the antiquities was taken. They are
very numerous, comprising broken pottery, floor, roof, and other tiles, bones of animals, iron nails,
coins, and implements ; and also earthenware vessels. In one part of the field a large quantity
of dark-coloured earth was found, and this yielded several objects of interest. Amongst others
were found close to the smaller building, a pair of bronze compasses (fig. i) in perfect preserva-
tion, 6£ in. long, which work on a nail as a pivot or axis, the pointed or sharp end of the nail
projecting half an inch on the side opposite to the head or nut, and having the point bent
downwards ; portions of bronze armillae (fig;. 2 to 7) ; part of necklace (fig. 8), made of
rings of silver wire, ornamented with glass beads, the rings, each consisting of two coils of
fine wire, set alternately, two and three together, divided by small beads of dark blue glass.
The fragment is 3 in. in length, and the clasp at one end perfect. There were found also the
pin of a. fibula (tig. 9), 4 in. in length, and formerly gilt, a very similar bronze pin from Wood-
perry, Oxon., may be compared with this [Arch. Journ. (1846), iii, 120]; a bronze ring with
12
ROMANO-BRITISH BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
hoop and two links of wire chain broken (fig. 10) ; part of a clasp, or snap (fig. 1 1), bronze,
formerly gilded, which seems to have belonged to a belt ; a triangular piece of bronze (fig. 12),
the surface and edges, which are rough, appear to have been plated with gold, probably part
of some ornament; two bronze rings (figs. 13, 14); the bone handle of a knife (fig. 15);
a fragment of a bone armilla or bracelet (fig. 16) ; a bone pin, broken at both ends (fig. 17) ;
a comb formed of several pieces of bone riveted together with bronze fastenings, it was quite
perfect when discovered ; a flat piece of bone nearly square, with a small hole perforated at each
of the four corners ; portions of iron cutlery or knives ; a bronze knife ; an iron ladle ; the
head of a small iron spear ; an iron arrow head, and other iron objects.
Besides these were discovered a large iron ladle for melting metal, a lump of molten lead,
another of bronze, pieces of charcoal, a large quantity of nails, an iron spindle, several bronze
styles or pins, a key, numerous fragments of Stonesfield slate used for the roofs, some of them
having the nails by which they were fastened to the timber still remaining on them, and a
piece of Andernach lava, which, from its shape, may have formed the keystone of an arch, or
was possibly part of a quern. The fragments of pottery were very numerous, though
PLAN OF ROMAN FOUNDATION! AT TINGIWICK
'3
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
no complete articles were found, and none were large enough for the investigators to
distinguish the shape, size, and ornamentation of the vessels to which they belonged. Among
them were several fragments of amphorae of large size, in coarse light red ware, and
of mortaria, one of which was roughened with iron scoriae. There was only one piece of
Samian ware. One fragment of a crucible of blacklead ware like those used by metallurgists,
was found. A few pieces of glass were found, yellower in colour than the usual Roman glass.
In addition to these antiquities thirty-nine coins were discovered, singly distributed throughout
the field, ranging in date from Elagabalus (A.D. 218-22) to Theodosius (A.D. 379-95).
WAVENDON HEATH. — An amphora was found in a sand-pit [Lysons, Bucks. 483].
ROMAN OBJECTS FOUND AT TINGEWICK
14
ROMANO-BRITISH BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
WESTON TURVILLE. — Remains of a Roman burial were discovered here in 1855 [Arch. Jaurn. xxxv,
290 ; lllut. Land, News, 21 July 1855]. In the rectory garden, at a depth of 4 ft. 6 in. below
the surface, a Roman vessel of coarse yellow pottery was found, which bore traces of old
fractures, probably either an amphora or a cinerary urn. It was placed in a hole i8in. in
diameter, in cretaceous clay, very tenacious and impervious to water ; the contiguous clay was
streaked with dark lines. The accompanying objects were in glass : a bluish-green circular
vessel, with pieces of bone adhering to it 5 a green glass vessel, 6 in. in height, 2^ in. square,
m. 17
ROMAN OBJECTS POUND AT TINCEWICK
'5
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
which contained ashes ; a similar vessel, 2f in. square, of which only the bottom was found,
containing ashes ; a vessel of thinner glass, of lighter green, 3 in. square. A patera of Samian
ware, nearly entire, more than 2 in. high, diameter 7 in., potter's mark MVXTVLLIM,
containing ashes and leaves; another patera, if in. high, 6^ in. in diameter; a cup with the
potter's name, MEIII. M., nearly 2 in. in height, 4^ in. in diameter, if in. at bottom,
was also found, and some silver beads with wire attached to them ; with them were an orna-
ment like a bugle in shape, ^ in. long ; a._fibu/a, or brooch, in bronze ; and a bronze ornament
1 in. high, like a fly ; also a vessel of coarse light red pottery, with the neck broken off, 7 in. in
height, largest diameter 4 in., containing ashes ; vessels in drab-coloured ware, one ornamented
with an imperfect cross-barred pattern, height rather more than 3^ in., diameter 3 in. ; another,
probably about 9 in. or 10 in. high, diameter 5^ in. ; a third, more than 2^ in. in height, in
diameter not quite 2 in. Besides these there were ornaments and various articles : iron with
rivets, and short nails with fibres of wood adhering to them ; fibulae; a segment of a circular plate
in silvery bronze, perhaps part of a mirror or circular _/%«/,?; part of a pin with ornamented head,
2 in. long, in coloured bone ; part of a plain bone pin, 3 in. long ; a small piece of leather with
nails in it. Probably these were the remains of a female burial.
WHADDON CHASE. — In February 1849 coins, together with the fragments of an urn or earthen
vessel, were discovered by a labourer while ploughing a portion of Whaddon Chase, but it is
doubtful if the coins were Roman. About three hundred and twenty of the coins were
preserved. It is said that none were inscribed ; about a quarter of them were stamped with
the figure of a horse unbridled, the reverse was a wreath dividing the field, while one division
was filled by a flower. The average weight of the coins was 90 grains Troy \Rec. of Bucks.
i, 15]. Our authority states that 'further search in a part of the adjacent chase yet uncleared
led to the discovery of a very perfect Roman camp, inclosing an area of about five acres.'
*»* "^> f-*
*****!&&
N.I ,-;- r
VN1«:»-"-'-"" MARSH GREEN I \\
"
ANCIENT _.,,...„..
COINS FOUrtO
* KEEP HIUU
PLAN OF ROMAN SETTLEMENT NEAR WYCOMBE
16
ROMANO-BRITISH BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
of wheels' still
two feet thick,
be unusual with
would probably
WORMINGHALL. — A Constant in :':m bronze coin found here was exhibited in the Loan Exhibition at
Aylesbury, July 1905, by Mr. R. VV. Stone of Long Crendon [Catalogue of the Exhibition].
WYCOMBE. — There seems to have been a Roman settlement here of some importance. A tessel-
lated pavement was discovered in 1724 in Penn Mead at the west end of a pasture called the
Rye, about half a mile from Wycombe. According to a record of the time it was 'set in
curious figures, as circles, squares, diamond squares, eight squares, hearts, and many other
curious figures, with a beast in the centre in a circle, like a dog standing sideways by a tree,1
all set with stones in red, black, yellow, and white, about a quarter of an inch square ; the
whole pavement was about fourteen foot square, the fine work in the middle was ten foot long
and eight foot broad, the rest was filled up with Roman brickabout an inch and a half square.' In
1 862 excavations were made on the site at the expense of the late Lord Carrington, and under the
supervision of Mr. E. J. Payne and Mr. William Burgess. It is difficult to follow the lines of the
building disclosed from the plan of these excavations that has been preserved, but the villa was only
partially explored. Mr. Payne in his paper on the excavations, and Mr. Parker following him
in his History of Wycombe, describe a portion of a range of buildings, to the south-east of which
were found two apartments 1 8 ft. apart. These are described as towers forming an entrance
to the range of buildings before mentioned, south-west of which were found other living rooms.
The suggestion as to the towers is improbable, notwithstanding the assertion that 'traces
remain in the wall connecting them. The walls, which are only about
are not strong enough for towers, and fortification of this nature would
the Romano-Britons. If complete excavations of the site were made they
show that the rooms and walls discovered formed portions of a courtyard
type of house of the Romano-British period.
The principal part uncovered was apparently the north-western range, which comprised
an inner and outer corridor with a series of apartments between them. The large room at the
north-eastern end of the north-western range had a tessellated pavement at its south-western
end, which has been thus described : it consisted of a ' square flanked by two oblongs. To the
south-west of this were other tessellated pavements, one with the remains of a design in very
fine tesserae ; to the south-east of this was another room, the floor of which was destroyed and
the pilot of the hypocaust exposed." A small apartment at the south-western end of the range,
which is shown by Mr. Parker, but not by Mr. Payne, is supposed by the former to be that
discovered in 1724. In the south-eastern range were the two rooms paved with common red
tesserae which have been described as
towers, and southward of these were
other remains which were only par-
tially explored, consisting of a large
apartment with a hypocaust and the
ruins of pilot mixed with pieces of
pavement of guilloche pattern. Ad-
joining this was found what Mr.
Parker describes as without doubt the
bath, with a pavement of white
tesserae about an inch square, and a
margin of red tesserae. The walls
were decorated with paintings, a 'part
of a fish resembling a roach ' being
seen. Remains of other walls were
found which were possibly on the
line of the inner corridor. Among the
objects brought to light were an arrow
head, two bone pins, a bronze steel-
yard similar to one found at Circn-
cester, and many fragments of pottery.
The designs of the pavements were
worked in very fine tesserae, described
as no larger than peas, indicating
probably good work and an early date.
Near to these villas is the site of an
ancient camp, in which eleven ancient
British gold coins have been found. PLAN or TOWN OF WYCOMBE, »HOWING ROMAN SITES
1 This central subject, Mr. John Parker suggests, is Cave Caaem, but we may with more probability sup-
pose that it represented some mythological incident.
2 '7 3
PIAN OF ROMAN VILLA AT WVCOMBE
ROMANO-BRITISH BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Some Roman tesserae were discovered a little to the north of this villa in a field called Holywell
or Hallewell Mead, which has given rise loan improbable theory that here was a Roman fortress.
A Roman vessel was found in High Street, Wycombe, and Roman coins of Nerva (A.D. 96—7),
Antoninus Pius (A.D. 138-61), and Marcus Aurelius (A.D. 161-80) have been found in the
neighbourhood, and a Roman wall and tessellated pavements in the garden of a hou-e in All-
hallows Lane, adjoining a house called The Priory, on the west [E. J. Payne, Rec. of Bucks, iii,
no. 5, p. 160 et seq. ; Parker, The Early Hist, and Antiq. of IVycombe, 2, 3], In 1863 a
bronze ornament was discovered, 4^ in. long ; a quadrangular tube with flanges round three
sides of one end, and a bust of Minerva at the other end ; midway on each side of the tube
was a square hole. The workmanship of the head was bold and coarse. Probably it was part
of the pole of a chariot. It is now in the British Museum.
Recent excavations for the Great Western and Great Central Railway Companies in the
neighbourhood of High Wycombe have disclosed Roman coins. One was of the date
A.D. 322. The obverse has a bust to t'le right with the legend CRISPUS NOBIL c. In its
centre the reverse has a decorated altar inscribed VOTIS xx ; around it BEATA TRANQUILLITAS,
and below, p. LOND., indicating a London mint. Another coin of the date A.D. 300 shows
the bust of the Emperor Valerius ; the legend is MAXIMIANVS NOB. c.*s., the reverse a standing
figure representing the genius of the Roman people, with the legend surrounding it CENIO
POPULI ROMANI [Dally Telegraph, 3 Mar. 1904]. A third isolated coin of the 2nd century is
silver. The obverse has a bust of the empress, with face to the right and superscription JULIA
PIA FELIX AVG. ; the reverse has VENVS GENETRIX, with an image of a goddess [Daily Chron.
26 Aug. 1902].
MAP
showing
of
BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Reference
B Hill Forts etc.
Rectangular Camps etc .
3 Castle Mounts
Castle Mounts with attached Courts
Homestead Moats
Manorial Strongholds
Ancient Village Sites
Unclassified Earthworks
ANCIENT EARTHWORKS
The student of the earthworks of a county, or larger tract of country,
who attempts anything in the way of classification finds his efforts beset with
considerable difficulties. The present form of the ramparts and fosses is a
matter which causes little, if any, trouble, and the plans published in the
maps of the Ordnance Survey (25 in. to the mile) will be found generally
sufficient.
The chief difficulties he encounters are : (i) in ascertaining the respec-
tive ages or periods of the works ; and (2) in discovering to what extent the
earthworks, as originally constructed, have been modified or obliterated.
Without something more than an examination of the surface this is often not
only difficult, but impossible. Under these circumstances the decision of the
Congress of Archaeological Societies to record the remains as they actually
exist, without at present attempting to assign them to any particular period,
is undoubtedly wise. Certain works, such as regular Roman camps and
Norman strongholds, are, of course, sufficiently well marked to be classified.
The present description of the ancient defensive and other earthworks
of Buckinghamshire, which has been written in conformity with this prin-
ciple, will be understood, it is hoped, to be by no means a final or complete
record of these interesting relics of ancient times. Before any such precise
summary can be written it will be necessary to make careful and minute
investigations, aided by extensive excavations of the various sites.
The main divisions of ancient defensive earthworks contemplated in the
scheme of the Congress just referred to are as follows : —
A. — Fortresses partly inaccessible, by reason of precipices, cliffs, or water, additionally defended
by banks or walls.
B. — Fortresses on hill-tops with artificial defences, following the natural line of hill ; or,
though usually on high ground, less dependent on natural slopes for protection.
C. — Rectangular or other simple inclosures, including forts and towns of the Romano-British
period.
D. — Forts consisting only of a mount with encircling ditch or fosse.
E. — Fortified mounts, either artificial or partly natural, with traces of an attached court or
bailey, or of two or more such courts.
F. — Homestead moats, such as abound in some lowland districts, consisting of simple inclosures
formed into artificial islands by water-moats.
G. — Inclosures, mostly rectangular, partaking of the form of F, but protected by stronger
defensive works, ramparted and fossed, and in some instances provided with outworks.
H. — Ancient village sites protected by walls, ramparts, or fosses.
X. — Defensive works which fall under none of these headings.
The ancient defensive earthworks of Buckinghamshire are divisible into
several classes, the earliest hill-top fortifications being closely related to the
Chiltern Hills, a range of chalk downs which, with the exception of the
21
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Thames Valley in the extreme south, occupies practically the whole of
the southern half of the county.
Compared with the earthworks of some other counties the works of
Buckinghamshire are of small extent, and, owing to the wooded character of
the hills, they are less easily seen than they are in such a district as the
South Downs of Sussex, for instance, where the ramparts and fosses are
prominent features, sometimes visible from considerable distances.
In any attempt to take a general survey of the ancient camps of Buck-
inghamshire, it is desirable to bear in mind the important natural features of
the Chiltern Hills, which run across the county in a practically-east-and-west
direction, the hilly ground of the chalk being to the south, and the low-lying
pasturage ground of the Vale of Aylesbury stretching away to the north. The
hills of Buckinghamshire
N. never afforded such an
essentially grazing dis-
trict as the South Downs,
and there was no reason
to construct camps of
large size capable of in-
closing and defending
vast flocks of sheep or
herds of cattle. The
fertile plains of Bucking-
hamshire were appa-
rently brought into cul-
tivation at a time when
this system of protective
inclosure was no longer
in vogue nor necessary.
SCALE Or FEET
O IOO tOO 2>OO
HILL FORTS
(CLASS B)
' DANESBOROUGH,* Bow BRICKHILL
A number of the
Buckinghamshire earth-
works come under this heading owing to the fact that the lines of artificial
defence follow the natural contour of the ground, and are placed at the point
where tolerably level ground or table-land develops into inconvenient or
dangerous declivity.
Bow BRICKHILL : DANESBOROUGH. — This is a rather irregular oval earth-
work consisting of a single rampart, broken by a considerable space on the
north, and damaged from the north-east side by the construction of a modern
road.
CHOLESBURY CAMP. — The form of this camp, as will be seen from the
accompanying plan, is fairly oval, slight irregularities being discernible on
the west and north-west sides.
The camp, locally known as ' the Bury,' occupies a piece of level ground
on the summit of a range of the Chiltern Hills which marks the junction of
the eastern part of Buckinghamshire and the western part of Hertfordshire.
22
ANCIENT EARTHWORKS
The works, which encompass an area of about ten acres, inclose the parish
church and churchyard of Cholesbury, which are situated in the south-west
part of the inclosure.
Lipscomb, in his History of Buckinghamshire? writes : —
The lines consist of a very deep trench and strong vallum or rampart of earth, on the
north, east, and part of the south sides, strengthened by a second line at the north-eastern
and north-western angles ; and also from the south-eastern part, in a parallel line along that
side, until it disappears near the churchyard : part of which seems to occupy the inner
bank, as the site of the minister's house does likewise the exterior rampart, which has
evidently been levelled. On the east and west sides or ends of the encampment the foss is
single ; in some places 30 ft. in depth, but towards the south-west it is nearly obliterated.
In those parts where the trench is double, the width is about equal to the depth ; and the
,^>
'//
dr $z »v
jJ* ^cr >»$ c- ,-
/ ^// ^n
& = £ ** // £?
- - -* = s ^ o$?
&/f
Church - Pond ^^ ^f^
*:-?.* A* <f$
1 ' ~1~ >>* v»> v^ v*-
s.i~"--z n.. —u P^^W ->.^ »VL«V
-^•;
»XSt
SCALE Of FEET
o \oo too soo
CHOLESBURY CAMP
rampart between them, as well as the sides of the ditches and verge exteriorly, are covered
with trees and brushwood, excepting only where a narrow approach to the area has been
left on the south and west. About the centre of the north side appears to have been
another opening, but long disused, so as to have become obscured by trees and bushes ; and
now, only to be conjectured one of the original entrances.
Lipscomb speaks subsequently of the camp as an oblong square, an
opinion formed apparently by his misunderstanding of the addition to
the north-west corner of the camp already alluded to. The fosses on the
southern side of the camp are of considerable depth, and the curve they
follow is determined apparently by the natural contour of the hill. On the
1 (1847) iii, 314. The camp is regarded by Lipscomb as of British or Danish workmanship.
23
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
north side the contiguous ground is nearly on a level with the area inclosed
by the vallum : but on the east and west, where the trench is single but of
great depth, it declines rapidly. On the south, where are two fosses, the
ground immediately contiguous is nearly on a level with the entrenchment,
but soon gradually declines. Along this part of the camp is the course of
an ancient road.
The general conclusions formed by Lipscomb from his examination of
the camp are that it is a work of Danish origin,3 and that originally it was
constructed as a single vallum round the top of an eminence, advantage
having been taken of the irregularities of the ground. He saw traces of
only two entrances, but a subsequent writer 3 succeeded in finding definite
traces of four entrances.
There is a good pond inside the area of the camp, which like West
Wycombe and Castle Thorpe incloses the church of the parish.
DESBOROUGH CASTLE. — This important earthwork, popularly called ' The
Roundabout,' lies on the top of a hill a little to the south-west of the road
which leads along the valley from High Wycombe to West Wycombe.
The camp must have been one of considerable strength in ancient times on
account of its important strategic situation and the arrangement of its
defences.
Originally the top of the hill appears to have been occupied by a
pre-historic camp inclosing a considerable area of ground. Subsequently a
smaller camp, oval in outline, and consisting of an outer fosse and an inner
rampart of great height and strength, was thrown up. A writer on this
camp, Mr. R. S. Downs, of Wycombe (Rec. of Bucks, v, 249), regards the
older camp as outworks of the newer camp, in which, he remarks, there can
be little doubt that there was a building of considerable strength, as the
remains of old tiling, hewn stone, and masonry plainly indicate.
Whilst felling trees which grew here about 1743 (he writes) portions of stone gothic work
were dug up resembling the jambs of a church window. Of the once-famous Desborough Castle,
nothing now remains but the name and the tradition that such a building once existed here.
The earlier earthworks at Desborough Castle have become much modi-
fied since the period when they were thrown up. Flint implements have
been found upon the site.
Numerous attempts have been made by different writers to show that
Desborough Castle is of Saxon or Danish origin, but these theories appear
to be merely speculations based on no solid or sufficient evidence. It is sig-
nificant, however, that Desborough Hundred derives its name from this castle.
Desborough * was also probably a place of popular meeting or folk-mote,
and from every point of view was a central and locally important place ;
but an inspection of its interesting earthworks is sufficient to suggest that its
importance began at a far earlier time than the Saxon or Danish periods.
HEDGERLEY : BULSTRODE PARK. — The chief feature about this camp is
its size, which is unusually large for Buckinghamshire. The entrenchments,
it will be noticed, are double on the north-east side, treble at one or two
points, and inclose an area of 2 1 acres of land. The breaks on the north-
' Of this we can find no evidence. ' Rev. W. Hastings Kelke, Arch. Journ. xiv, 273.
4 Rec. of Bucks, viii, 464.
24
ANCIENT EARTHWORKS
west and south-east sides are probably larger now than they originally were
owing to damage or subsequent modification of the earthen banks. When
Lipscomb wrote' the camp was
disfigured by some large oak-trees
growing on the ramparts, a blemish
which still remains.
MONKS RISBOROUGH : PULPIT
WOOD. — This hill-top camp may
be described as consisting of an
irregular and interrupted circle of
rampart strengthened by a fosse,
which is more complete than the
bank, a circumstance which may
be explained, at least in part, by
the subsequent degradation, by rain-
wash and other forces, of the ram-
parts. The double line of ramparts
on the north-east, east, and south-
east sides was necessary, in order to
cut off the camp from a small area
of flat ground to the north-east.
The manner in which the
natural features have been utilized,
and the extent to which these
"'••.iMimimmiiniiMKii'
JCALlOf fttT
« 190 too ».»0
features have affected the shape of
BULSTRODE PARK, HEDCIRLET the camp, are points which strike
the observer at once, and clearly
testify to the skill of the people who made the earthwork. On the north-
western side of the camp the natural slope of the earth is so great as to render
a built-up rampart hardly necessary. A fosse, therefore, has been constructed
with a small expenditure of
effort by throwing the moved
soil down the hill, in the
manner indicated in the sec-
tion C— D in the accompany-
ing plan. This s a speces
of labour-saving fortification,
of which there are numerous
other pre-historic instances.
In this county there is an
even finer example of its use
on the south-west side of
the very interesting series of
earthworks surrounding the
upper part of the hill on
which stands the church of
West Wycombe. On the
north, north-east, east, and
$! *-
MJ> SECTIONS.
SCALE Or
100 zoo
300
PULPIT WOOD, MONKS RISBOROUGH
* Hut. and Antiq. of Bucki. (1847), iv, 507.
25
/i,
*,
N
05
Church
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
south-east sides of Pulpit Wood there is a double set of ramparts, and exactly
on the east side is a large entrance.
In the inclosure of the camp and round it many flint flakes and chip-
pings, indicative of a Neolithic factory, have been noticed ; and, although it
is perhaps not wise to pronounce positively upon the matter, there is some
reason to believe that this is entitled to rank as one of the Neolithic strong-
holds of Buckinghamshire.
HIGH WYCOMBE : KEEP
HILL. — This is another hill-top
camp which may be mentioned
under Class B.
WEST WYCOMBE. — This
is a nearly circular earthwork,
inclosing the church and
churchyard of West Wycombe.
From the north to the east the
rampart is double. On the
south-east the works have been
destroyed in connexion with
the building of a large eigh-
teenth-century mausoleum for
the use of the Dashwood
family. From the south to
the west the natural slope of
the ground is so great as to
render fosses unnecessary, and
the defences, therefore, consist
of two terraces. The inner
ring of defence is pretty clearly
indicated by the fence inclos-
ing the churchyard.
A narrow neck of land of
about the same level as the
camp runs to the northward,
where it joins the hills beyond,
but on the other sides the hill
has steep natural slopes on which grow numerous yew trees.
The terraced defences just referred to are interesting, and may be com-
pared with a similar but single piece of work at Pulpit Wood.
WENDOVER. — On Boddington Hill there is an unmistakable camp, and
at Backham Hill the alleged camp is probably a barrow which has sub-
sequently been used as a beacon station.
WHELPLEY HILL. — There is a fine oval camp here nearly obliterated.
'Mausoleum
SCALE OF FEET
O 100 zoo sop
SECTIONS.
C.Hass of Hertfordshire
Conglomerate .
EARTHWORKS ROUND WEST WYCOMBE CHURCH
26
ANCIENT EARTHWORKS
RECTANGULAR OR OTHER SIMPLE INCLOSURES
(CLASS C)
Examples of rectangular earthworks remain at
MUSWELL HILL, near Brill, where the site abounds in flints ;
GREAT MISSENDEN. — One at Reddenwych Wood, and another on
Castle Hill, called Rookwood Camp ;
SHENLEY CHURCH END ; and
WHADDON.
FORTS CONSISTING ONLY OF A MOUNT WITH
ENCIRCLING DITCH OR FOSSE
(CLASS D)
At Cublington, six miles to the north-east of Aylesbury, there is a work
known as ' the Beacon,' marked as a tumulus on the Ordnance Survey map,
which may be placed under Class D, as it appears to have been a castle
mount.
MOUNTS WITH ONE OR MORE ATTACHED COURTS
(CLASS E)
Buckinghamshire furnishes only a few examples of moated mounts with
courts, or baileys, attached. In addition to those which remain, it is
possible that the earthwork defences of Buckingham Castle were of the
moated mount and bailey type. The small engraved bird's-eye view in Speed's
early seventeenth-century map shows an eminence marked ' Castell Hill,'
which certainly suggests this ; but as the site has been entirely altered and
levelled it is impossible to say positively.
CASTLE THORPE. — The evidence for this belonging to Class E is not
very strong, but the mount is clearly defined, and in the case of one of the
baileys or in-
closures, part of
the defences
consists of dou-
ble ramparts.
The parish
church, as in
the case of two
other Bucking-
hamshire sites,
is built within
the precincts of
the more an-
cient earth- SCALEOFFECT '//imV <!' M, -,/« Ch<
works,doubtless 9 '9<> too 3QQ Mary*
for protection. EARTHWORKS AT CAVTLI THORPE
27
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
SCALE OF FEET
I IOO ZOO 3OO
iii
CASTLE HILL, HIGH WYCOMBK
HIGH WYCOMBE. — Castle Hill, standing in private grounds at High
Wycombe, may possibly be part of an earthwork of the Class E type.
LITTLE KIMBLE : CYMBELINE'S MOUNT.
— This work, as has been remarked, occu-
Barrow pies an important and prominent look-out
point on a spur of the Chiltern Hills.
It may be conveniently placed under
Class E. Its situation and small size give
it a peculiar interest.
Compared with the finest types of
Class E, such as Arundel, Lewes, Ongar,
and Windsor, this work appears to present
a species of defence which is much more
nearly allied to pre-historic times, than to
the Norman period, an era to which the
regular mount and bailey earthworks are
now commonly referred by antiquaries. It
must have been always a very good point
from which much of the surrounding country could be overlooked. Indeed,
the earthwork seems in many ways far more suitable for such a purpose than
for a purely defensive camp possessing strategic advantages.
Cymbeline's Mount consists of a circular pyramidal mount with trun-
cated top. This top is surrounded at the base by a well-developed fosse, the
earth from which has been utilized in making the
annular rampart which incloses the whole. This
fact is clearly demonstrated by the re-arranged
chalk revealed in rabbh-burrows.
Tradition assigns this work to Cymbeline, or
Cunobelinus, the king of south-east Britain who
was reigning a few years before the Christian era,
and about forty years after it ; but the evidence
of Neolithic implements found within one of the
square inclosures points to earlier occupation of
the site. Small fragments of pottery of pre-Roman
character have been noticed in the camp by the
present writer.
The inclosures or baileys may perhaps have
contained stockaded villages or places for the
shelter and protection of sheep, or indeed for both
purposes. No traces of masonry or foundations
are seen on the surface of the ground. The work overhangs Icknield Way.
On the still higher ground to the south of Cymbeline's Mount there are
remains which may possibly be those of ancient hut-floors.
k»*L?
SCALE OF FEET
0 100 gOO 300
CYMBELINE'S MOUNT, LITTLE
KIMBLE
ANCIENT EARTHWORKS
HOMESTEAD MOATS
(Class F)
Earthworks of this kind, consisting of simple inclosurcs formed into
artificial islands by water-moats, arc found mostly in the lowlands of the county
in such districts as the richly pastured plain known as the Vale of Aylesbury.
The purpose of the typical homestead moat was to afford protection
from marauders or wolves, and possibly to avoid risk of loss of, or damage to,
cattle and farm produce from a spreading fire. Yet, although they were not
constructed to withstand powerful enemies or regular military operations,
they were not infrequently of considerable size. They present much variety
of form, as will be seen from the typical examples here figured.
The probability is that the homestead moats of Buckinghamshire have
been constructed at different periods ; but if, as seems extremely probable,
they represent the period when the inhabitants of the county settled down to
the regular and systematic pursuit of husbandry, most of the really ancient
examples are probably Saxon.
In the accompanying plate are represented plans of nine typical or note-
worthy forms of homestead moats in Buckinghamshire.
Fig. i. — A very simple square inclosure with entrance at north-east
corner : Horton.
Fig. 2. — A very similar example in which the water, represented in
solid black, has probably shrunk in bulk, leaving precipitous sides within
and without the moat : Bow Brickhill.
Fig. 3. — A completely surrounded square island, the moat being crossed
by a bridge : Horton Hall, Slapton.
Fig. 4. — Two square islands surrounded by a moat : Apsley, Little
Kimble.
Fig. 5. — A curiously shaped semicircular island surrounded by a moat,
with an entrance at the south-western side : Church Farm, Pitstone.
Fig. 6. — A nearly regular five-sided island entirely surrounded by a
moat : Little Pednor Farm, Chesham.
Fig. 7. — A curiously irregular moat, roughly square outside, with
narrow entrance on north side : East End, North Crawley.
Fig. 8. — Dry moat at Cippenham, Burnham, inclosing the site of the
palace of Richard, earl of Cornwall and king of the Romans, therefore
probably a work of the thirteenth century, or earlier.
Fig. 9. — An irregularly shaped moat and inclosure, with a strengthening
rampart on the north-east and east : Dinton.
The following is a list, which has no pretension to completeness, of
homestead moats in Buckinghamshire : —
ASHLEY GREEN. — Moat inclosing ruins of chapel.
ASTON ABBOTS. — Remains of a moat.
ASTON CLINTON. — Rectangular moat : also a dry moat at Vatche's Farm.
ASTON SANDFORD. — A moat one mile north-east of church.
ASTWOOD. — Portions of a moat at The Bury : also a small quadrangular
moat.
AYLESBURY. — Moat ij miles east of the town.
29
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
BIERTON. — Moat J mile south of the village.
BOARSTALL. — Two quadrangular moats.
Bow BRICKHILL. — Simple quadrangular moat (see fig. 2).
BRADWELL ABBEY. — Irregularly shaped moat at Moat House ; and remains
of a circular moat.
BROUGHTON BY BIERTON. — Moat at Manor Farm.
BUCKLAND. — Moat of irregular quadrangular form, near Moat Farm.
BURNHAM. — Moat of large size and somewhat mutilated, at Burnham
Abbey : also moat round site of royal palace at Cippenham (see fig. 8).
BURNHAM BEECHES. — Harlequin's Moat.
CHEDDINGTON. — Moat near Cheddington Manor House.
CHESHAM. — Moat at Little Pednor Farm (see fig. 6).
CHETWODE. — Moat near church and Priory House.
CHICHELEY. — Moat i mile east of church.
CLAYDON, EAST. — Portions of a quadrangular moat.
CRAWLEY, NORTH. — Curious moat inclosing five small ponds at Up End ;
also moat at the manor-house at East End.
DENHAM. — Moat at Denham Lodge.
DINTON. — Irregular moat, with protecting rampart (see fig. 9).
DRAYTON BEAUCHAMP. — Irregular moat, consisting possibly of three
nearly related inclosures.
EDLESBOROUGH. — Moat at Church Farm, and another at Manor Farm.
Moat at Butler's Farm.
ELLESBOROUGH. — Moats at Nash Lee, Terrick House, Grove Farm, and
Chalkshire Farm.
GRENDON UNDERWOOD. — Moat of irregular form near the church.
HAMPDEN, GREAT. — Moat at Moat Farm, Kiln Common.
HANSLOPE. — Moat (part of) at Ivy Farm.
HARDMEAD. — Oblong moat at Astwood Farm : also a moat almost sur-
rounding the site of Hardmead Manor House.
HARTWELL. — Moat 2 miles south-east of church.
HAVERSHAM. — Nearly complete quadrangular moat near church.
HOGSHAW. — Moat near Hogshaw Farm : also remains of rectangular
moat at Fulbrook Farm.
HORSENDEN. — Irreguhr fragments of moat. There is also a fairly com-
plete but irregular moat at Roundabout Wood.
HORTON. — Moat at Horton Hall. Another to the south-west of Horton
Mills (see fig. i). Remains of Moat at Berkin Manor.
HORWOOD, LITTLE. — Moat at Moat Farm.
HULCOTT. — Quadrangular moat, with entrance at north-west corner.
IVINGHOE. — Moat of quadrangular form, with extension to the north-
east.
KIMBLE, GREAT. — Moat at Marsh. Moat of irregular form at Grange
Farm.
KIMBLE, LITTLE. — Moat at Apsley : with double inclosure (see fig. 4).
LANGLEY MARISH. — Moat, of lozenge form, at Parlaunt Park Farm ;
two other moats at ' Trenches ; ' and another at Parsonage Farm.
LAVENDON. — Lavendon Grange and site of Lavendon Abbey, also at
Uphoe Manor House.
30
N
N
N
N
N
TYPICAL EXAMPLES OP HOMESTEAD MOATS IN BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
LUDGERSHALL. — Small quadrangular moat ; also moat, of irregularly
quadrangular form, at Tetchwich Farm.
MARSTON, NORTH. — Two moats, 2 and 3 miles west of the village.
MARSWORTH — Moat at Marsworth Great Farm.
MISSENDEN, GREAT. — Moat at Bury Farm.
MURSLEY. — Moat to the south of the village.
OLNEY. — Moat in the township of Warrington.
PITSTONE. — Moat inclosing a nearly semicircular space at Church
Farm (see fig. 5).
PRINCES RISBOROUGH. — Fragment of moat at the old vicarage ; another
adjacent moat, partly dry, but originally quadrangular, called ' The Mount.'
QUAINTON. — Moat, possibly once quadrangular, of large size, at Dod-
dershall House.
QUARRENDON. — Two moats of quadrangular form.
RAVENSTONE. — Remains of a moat, originally of some importance.
SHENLEY CHURCH END. — Moat adjoining the rectangular camp.
SHERINGTON. — Nearly quadrangular moat inclosing manor-house.
SIMPSON. — Moat i mile south-east of church.
SOULBURY. — Dry moat to the south of Liscombe Park.
STEWKLEY. — Moat near Stewkley Church.
STOKE GOLDINGTON. — Dry moat at Church Farm ; also a nearly
rectangular moat, with entrance on west side.
STOKE MANDEVILLE. — Moat at Moat Farm.
STOKE POGES. — Moat at Ditton Park.
TATTENHOE. — Moat near church.
WENDOVER. — Two moats 2 miles west of the town.
WESTON TURVILLE. — Small circular moat to the west of Weston Manor
House ; a dry moat ; small fragment of moat ; and another moat at Manor
Farm.
WEXHAM. — Moats of irregular forms at Wexham Court.
WING. — Traces of moat at Ascott Hall.
WOTTON UNDERWOOD. — Moat (fragments of) at Moat Farm.
It is noteworthy that the homestead moats of Buckinghamshire, which
are generally of square, normal shape, in many cases inclose a space which is
associated with farmsteads bearing the suggestive appellations of manor
farm, moat farm, &c. In some homestead moats in the county one may find
considerable irregularity of shape, a circumstance which is probably due to
enlargement or modification arising from the amalgamation of several adjacent
inclosures.
The distribution of homestead moats in Buckinghamshire, as elsewhere,
is largely governed by the presence or absence of water. They are to be
found in some abundance in the valleys and low-lying ground in the middle
and northern parts of the county, and even on the sides of the Chilterns and
other hills up to about 400 ft. above ordnance datum. This is at the present
time much above the level where water usually occurs, but probably it was
not so when the homestead-moats were constructed.
ANCIENT EARTHWORKS
STRONG DEFENSIVE INCLOSURES
(CLASS G)
An earthwork which apparently belongs to this class is the circular
moat-like work which incloses Hawridge Court.
ANCIENT VILLAGE SITES
(CLASS H)
There is an important inclosure, once stockaded, which may be placed
in this class, at Hoggeston, a parish in the north of the county, situated
3$ miles to the south-east of Winslow. The following particulars have been
very kindly furnished by the Rev. C. H. Tomlinson, rector of Hoggeston.
The inclosure, which is oblong in shape with rounded corners, is of
large size, measuring nearly a quarter of a mile from east to west, and about
one-eighth part of a mile from north to south. The inclosing ditch is more
pronounced on the east and west sides than on the north and south, but it is
quite clearly traceable all round. Towards the north-east corner of and
within the inclosure there is a pond, and there is another pond on the south
side, and still another close to the eastern ditch on the outside. The church
and rectory house are inside the inclosure.
The probability is that this was an original settlement in the Forest of
Bernwood, entrenched and stockaded as a defence against wild beasts and
unfriendly neighbours.
MISCELLANEOUS EARTHWORKS
(CLASS X)
GREAT MISSENDEN : EARTHWORKS IN BRAY'S WOOD. — The rectangular
banks of which these works consist comprise a complete square inclosure
with an imperfect oblong inclosure
partly surrounding it, but lying
mainly to the west. In the present
condition of the works it is not
possible to say whether the three
remaining sides of the oblong were
ever completed by a fourth side in
such a way as entirely to surround
the square work, but there are one
or two points which seem to indicate
that such was not the case. The
probability is that the square por-
tion of the entrenchments was
constructed for the protection of a
dwelling-house or small collection
of houses, whilst the oblong addition
SCAUEOF FECT
100 200 300
33
CAMP IN BRAY'S WOOD, GREAT MISSENDEN
5
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
served as a defence for the outbuildings and cattle. The discovery 6 of
fragments of Roman pottery and remains of buildings actually inside this
square inclosure rather confirms this view, and, although suggesting occupation
of the spot during the Roman period, by no means precludes the possibility
of an earlier or a later origin. To the east there are some minor works
which may have been field inclosures. One of them is broken, giving
access to a pond, doubtless for the benefit of cattle.
Whatever may have been the condition of the square inclosure in
pre-historic and in Roman times, it is known that in much later days a
moated house was built upon the site, and early in the nineteenth century
large quantities of building material, flints, &c., were carted away. The
whole place has been much obscured and damaged by a dense growth of
forest trees.
Other remains of miscellaneous earthworks which may be mentioned
are (i) the defensive works of Bolbeck Castle at Whitchurch ; (2) works at
Brill near the church ; (3) works at Ivinghoe and Pitstone Hills ; and (4)
works near Great Kimble Church.
There is a roughly square entrenchment, called Grove Bank, 2j miles
north-east of Chesham. At its north-wrest are some traces of walling, as if
intended for a castle, but now levelled.
At Oving there is a circular camp, and at Medmenham there are two
works, viz. Danesditch and States Farm Camp.
GRIMES DYKE. — There are several variations in the popular name of this
important earthwork ; Grymes, Grymer's, or Grim's Dyke or Ditch being
amongst the most common. Of the great antiquity of the work there can be
no doubt. It is mentioned in a charter of the time of Henry III, and the
important place it occupies in local folk-lore is sufficient indication, one may
imagine, of its very early historic, or even pre-historic, antiquity. The
purpose of the great ditch or dyke is a matter of some uncertainty, but
it seems clear that it should be included in this account of the ancient earth-
works of Buckinghamshire, through which county it runs.
Grimes Dyke is, as its name suggests, a ditch of considerable importance.
It consists of a fosse and rampart which, in certain more perfect parts,
measure about 40 ft. in width and 30 ft. in depth. Its course, which one
writer 7 considers to be its main feature, runs through the southern part of
Buckinghamshire along the Chiltern Hills. The ditch keeps within the
platform of the high ground of the hills. It is by no means easy to follow
its exact course, but the writer 8 just referred to, who evidently had an
intimate knowledge of the district, points out that it has been traced from
Bradenham, whence it runs in bold outline through the woods to Lacey
Green, forming the boundary of the parish of Princes Risborough. Thence,
turning at an angle, it maintains its conspicuous course by Redland End,
through Hampden Park, where, again turning sharply round, it runs near
Hampden House, and onwards towards Great Missenden. Crossing the
valley the course of the ditch runs near King's Ash, in Wendover parish ;
then, passing through woods near St. Leonards, it continues in a now muti-
lated state over Wigginton Common, and is met with in full preservation
6 Rev. W. J. Burgess, Rec. of Bucks, i, 171.
'Ibid. 1,25. 8Op. cit.
34
ANCIENT EARTHWORKS
above Berkhampstead, in Hertfordshire. Crossing the valley northward at that
point it stretches over Berkhampstead Common towards Ashridge.
The purpose of Grimes Dyke is a question which has exercised the minds
and imaginative powers of many people in different periods. Some have
wildly suggested that ' Grim ' is a translation of Severus, whilst the character
of the name itself clearly attributes the work to a supernatural origin.
Another theory is that this great ditch running along the Chiltern Hills
served as a line of embankments to connect the strongholds of West Wycombe,
Cholesbury, and other camps by which it passes. The obvious objec-
tion to this explanation is that it would be difficult, if not impossible, to
defend such an extremely extended bulwark without the aid of an armed
force which was entirely out of the question at the time. Again, it cannot
have been constructed for a roadway, because it passes over hills too steep for
vehicles. It is quite certain that it could not have been constructed for
purposes of fortification, because the works are less developed on low ground
than they are on steep hills.
It seems almost certain that this ancient line of fosse and rampart was
intended to serve as a boundary-mark, separating the districts occupied by
different tribes or principalities. It is clear, too, that such an extensive line
of earthworks must have been the work of peaceable times, and of a large
combination of willing hands. Such operations as these would have been
impossible in war-like times, and in the presence of active and belligerent
enemies.'
Without presuming to have finally settled what has long been a vexed
question amongst antiquaries, we may suggest this as a useful working theory.
It is possible, of course, that future discoveries may have the effect of proving
quite clearly that the earthworks were made for another purpose, but in the
meanwhile the boundary-mark theory seems to be open to few if any
objections.
In conclusion the writer desires to express his thanks for valuable assis-
tance, particularly in reference to little-known earthworks, courteously given
by Mr. A. Hadrian Allcroft, M.A.,and Mr. C. Angell Bradford, F.S.A., and
to the late Mr. I. Chalkley Gould, F.S.A., for kindly reading the proofs of
this article.
* Arch. Journ. xiv, 272-4.
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC
HISTORY
* "W" T is true of this County, that it liveth more by its lands than by its
hands. Such the fruitfulness, venting the native commodities thereof
at great rates (thank the vicinity of London, the best chapman), that
no handicrafts of note, save what are common to other counties, are
used therein excepting any will instance in bone lace, much thereof being
made about Owldney in this county.' This description of Buckinghamshire
in Fuller's Worthies of England1 sums up the conditions of social and eco-
nomic life in the county for many centuries. Until the eighteenth century,
when lace-making was extensively carried on, the population was occupied
mainly in agriculture and those trades supplementary to it. Corn-dealers,
brewers, butchers, masons and men employed in other branches of the
building trades, weavers and fullers, tailors, shoemakers, and hatters are the
tradesmen that most frequently appear in the county.
The county is divided into two very distinct divisions by its natural
features. In the Chiltern districts the greater proportion of the land is
arable and well wooded. To the north of the Chiltern Hills lies the Vale of
Aylesbury, a famous pasture country, stretching from the foot of the Chilterns
and the borders of Oxfordshire to the western boundary of Hertfordshire, and
on the north as far as Wingrave, Wing, and Whitchurch, though the country
lying beyond is sometimes included in the vale. Leland ' describes the Vale
as being ' cleane barren of wood and is champaine,' and in the sixteenth and
seventeenth centuries its pasture was mainly used for sheep-farming, but later,
and at the present day, dairy-farming has been found far more profitable
owing to the great demand in the London market.
The towns of Buckinghamshire at no time occupied a very important
place in the economic history of the county. In the Domesday Survey
Buckingham was the only borough mentioned separately, though a few
burgesses were found on the manor of Newport. Aylesbury and Wendover
only appear as manors in the hands of the king, and Wycombe as a town is
not mentioned at all. In the Hundred Rolls* two towns are mentioned,
Newport Pagnel and Wycombe, but they were held as parts of a manor, and
paid whatever service was due to the lord of the manor. Certain privileges
and exemptions were claimed at Newport Pagnel : no hidage was paid, and
some unspecified payment was not made from the borough because the bur-
gesses had no land except 'free burgage.' At High Wycombe the whole
1 p. 193 (ed. Nutttll). ' I tin. iv.
' llund. R. (Rec. Cora.), i. The reference to Wycombe is for a grant of King John.
37
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
manor had been held by King John, but he had granted it away in two parts,
the ' surburbum ' to Robert de Vipont and the whole borough to Alan Basset,
who paid a rent of £20 a year.
None of the boroughs in the county were incorporated by royal charter
until the sixteenth century, but at Chepping Wycombe, as the borough is
still called, a fine was levied between the lord and the burgesses in 1226 or
1 2 27,* and was confirmed by successive kings. The burgesses complained
that Alan Basset had done them certain damages and injuries contrary to the
liberties which they held of the ancestors of the king, and Alan granted to
them the whole borough and town of Wycombe, with the rents, markets, and
fairs, and with all other things appertaining to a free borough. Alan reserved
his demesnes and lands in the ' foreigns ' and certain privileges, but the bur-
gesses were to pay the rent and the service of one knight due to the king.
In 1237-8 the king confirmed this fine, with a slight alteration in the rent —
the fee-farm of the burgesses was £30 and I mark of silver. Alan Basset
had also the right to take tallage in the borough whenever the king tallaged
his demesnes. The fine was also confirmed by Edward I and Henry IV, and
took the place to a certain extent of a royal charter. At High Wycombe a
ledger has been preserved in which the important orders made by the officers
of the borough were entered from time to time.
The first entry was made early in the fourteenth century, and mentions
the merchant gild and the officers of the borough :
Every son and heir of every burgess shall have the liberty of the Gild of Merchants after
the death of his father by hereditary descent according to the custom of the town, and gives
10^., viz. id. to the mayor, ^d. to the clerk, \d. to the sub-bailiff, 8a. to the gildans, ^d. to
the Master of the Hospital of St. John.
This is the only mention of the merchant gild until the charter of Philip
and Mary, and at this time its membership was evidently co-extensive with
the number of burgesses. The chief officers were the mayor and bailiffs, the
sub-bailiff, the clerk, and the gildans. The gildans were responsible for the
management of the market and the preservation of the trading rights of
the gild. In 1316 an order was issued concerning the weavers who wished
to work in the borough. Previously they had paid \2d. a year to the
gildans for every loom working, but this was remitted, apparently to
encourage weavers to settle in the town. The order was made in ' plena
magna Gilda,' but, in 1313, an order to the butchers was made ' In magna et
plena curia villate de Wycumb de unanimo consensu communitatis.' At the
end of the fifteenth century a similar order restraining the freedom of the
corn-dealers in the market was ' ordeyned by the avys of the sayd mayre and
hes brederne with th' assent and grant of all the Broges and Commonoulties
of the town of Wicombe for a fast and staboll Act.' The tribute of the
corn-dealers was to be paid to the bailiff and not to the gildans, and probably
the merchant gild had been completely identified with the borough. The
mayor's 'brederne' were presumably the bailiffs. In 1398 there were strict
orders that no one of any condition should wander about the town after
ten o'clock at night \, if anyone was found out of doors without a reasonable
cause he might be seized, punished, and detained until set at liberty by the
mayor and commonalty.
4 Feet of F. Bucks. 10 Hen. III.
38
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
The privileges of the borough court were also closely guarded ; the pay-
ment of a fine or imprisonment was the punishment for a burgess impleading
anyone without the borough unless permission had been obtained from the
mayor.
At Aylesbury there are no records at all before the sixteenth century,
but no sort of incorporation was effected by the inhabitants. In 1 500 ' the
lord of the manor held the courts as for an ordinary manor, the court-leet
and view of frankpledge and the ' Curte,' no mention being made of bur-
gesses or of a borough court of any kind.
Buckingham was a borough by prescription, though it never sent
members to Parliament until the sixteenth century. In the fourteenth * cen-
tury two precepts were sent to the borough by Edward III to send two
representatives to a council. The precepts were addressed to the mayor and
two bailiffs, the borough officials. In a court roll7 in 1454—5 the names of
the courts held in the town are found. The ' Curia Burgentum ' was held
once in the year, the ' port mot ' once a month, but the entries are not
enlightening ; in the former two men made default, in the latter there were
frequent presentments for making and selling bread under weight, but there
are no entries as to the trade or government of the town, nor is there any
mention of the merchant gild amongst the records of the borough.8
Wendover, Amersham,9 and Great Marlow 10 sent members to Parlia-
ment in the reigns of Edward I, Edward II, and Edward III, and in
consequence obtained incorporation in the seventeenth century ; but they
were small market towns of little importance. Colnbrook ll was another
market town that was incorporated from 1544 to 1653. At different times
markets were held in thirty-seven places in the county, besides many fairs ;
of these the markets of Aylesbury, Wycombe, and Buckingham were of
great importance. The tolls, piccage, and stallage dues of a market were part
of the perquisites of the lord of the manor until a town was incorporated, so
that only at Chepping Wycombe did the borough control and receive the
profits from the market.
In the Domesday Survey the county was divided into eighteen hundreds
or districts for the purposes of local government, but some time before 1285'*
they were consolidated and formed into six groups, each containing three of
the old divisions, the 'Three Hundreds' of Buckingham, Newport, Cottesloe,
Ashendon, Aylesbury, and the Chiltern Hundreds of Desborough, Burnham,
and Stoke.
It is noteworthy that in this county the king retained all the hundreds
in his own hand. Hence the local courts were held by the sheriff, the chief
royal official in the county, and through him the king received the ferm of
the shire and other dues.
In spite, however, of the administrative and criminal jurisdiction being
thus controlled by the officers of the crown, the Hundred Rolls show that at
the end of the reign of Henry III, corruption, oppression, and abuse of power
were rampant.
• Arch. 1. 93. * Browne Willis, Hut. of Buckingham, 41
: P.R.O. Court Rolls, ptfo. 155-6.
1 From information kindly given by Mr. T. R. Hearn, town clerk of the borough of Buckingham.
' Lipscomb, Hut. and Antiq. of Biukt. iii, 161. " Ibid. 597. " Ibid, iv, 430-1.
" FeuJ. Aids (Rec. Com.), i, 89.
39
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Bailiffs and sub-bailiffs of the hundreds, escheators and coroners, with
their subordinates all exercised their different offices and all, from the highest
to the lowest, regarded them as sources of personal profit. Various inquisitions
were held during the thirteenth century to bring to light all such irregularities.
In the hundreds of Bonestowe, Molesho, and Seggelawe, the sheriff had
gradually raised the ferm since 1265 from IOQJ. to jTS, and the hundreds of
Newport had suffered a similar increase. On another occasion the sheriff
received money due to the king, gave no receipt for it, and never
accounted for it in the royal exchequer. Again, he exacted a fine for beau-
pleader at Chicheley which was not due from the township. Whether the
sheriff personally or the king was the gainer in this case does not appear.
The coroners extorted money from the various townships when they came to
hold inquests, and Elias de Eugaine, a bailiff, imprisoned a man, Hugh son of
Hugh by name, without cause and held him in durance until payment of
105^. was made.
Bribery was also rife amongst all officials. The same Elias de Eugaine,
when sheriff, accepted money to excuse men from serving on inquest ; the
coroners and bailiffs took bribes from different places to conceal crimes committed
within their boundaries, and to connive at the escape of prisoners from gaol.
The escheators who came to take possession of the lands falling in to the
king, do not seem to have been the personal gainers by the irregularities
practised, but the heirs of the last tenants suffered in many ways from the
wrongful seizure of land.
In the fourteenth century a special assize ls was held by the itinerant
justices of all ' Oppressions and Extortions.' The sheriffs and bailiffs were
still guilty of similar offences, but a prominent place was given to irregu-
larities in the collection of wool granted to the king. The collectors
were accused of refusing to give receipts for wool they had taken, or else of
weighing it falsely.
To gain any picture of the social condition of the inhabitants of Buck-
inghamshire in the Middle Ages, recourse must be had not to the towns but
almost exclusively to manorial records, for the manor was the unit around
which the whole local life of the country revolved.
The manors were for the most part in the hands of lay lords, for until
the twelfth century there were no religious houses in the county itself, though
a few manors were held by monasteries outside its boundaries.14 Later the
foundations were numerous, but they were all small and included no house of
the first importance. In consequence, there are no great collections of docu-
ments concerning the lands and tenants of the monasteries, which elsewhere
contribute so largely to the materials for the social history of the twelfth and
the two succeeding centuries. An early extent of the manors of Missenden
Abbey for the fourteenth century exists, and similar documents for one or two
manors which were temporarily in the hands of the king, but it is from the
court rolls and ministers accounts of lay manors for the most part that all
information must be gathered.16
11 Assize R. No. 74.
" The abbot of St. Albans claimed to hold Winslow and Horwood by a charter of King Offa ; Hund. R.
(Rec. Com.), i, 27.
15 Few of the court rolls or accounts date back to the thirteenth century, but from the method of com-
piling the latter, it is possible to obtain information of an earlier date than the actual date of the document.
40
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
The records in the northern part of the county are extremely scanty,
but in the Chiltern districts and the Vale of Aylesbury a fairly complete
picture of local organization can be drawn.
The private jurisdictions which existed in all parts of England may
be divided into two classes, the franchises of regalities, and the feudal
rights inherent to the possession of a manor and the mere fact of having
tenants. According to the royal theory regalia could only be exercised by a
subject in virtue of a direct grant from the crown, and it was this theory
that Edward I adopted in the vigorous ' Quo Warranto ' inquiry. Very few
lords in these cases could show a definite grant of regalia, but relied on the
vague words of the old charters granting ' sac and sok, toll and theam and
infangfhief.' In entry after entry in the Quo Warranto Rolls,1' the royal
lawyers declared that this formula only gave the right to an ordinary manorial
court and not to the view of frankpledge. Some lords too could not even
show a charter at all, but could only plead their prescriptive right to hold the
view of frankpledge and other royal privileges, the most common of which
were the assize of bread and ale, infangthief, waifs and strays, and the right
to hold markets and fairs. The great abbeys and barons held many such
franchises, and the different manors belonging to the great tenants in chief in
some cases formed an ' honour.' The earl of Gloucester held the honour of
Giffard," of which Crendon was the chief manor, and lands in the county
were parcel of the honours of Dudley, Peverel, Toctesburg, Chester, Berk-
hampstead, and Wallingford, the last being in the hands of the earl of Corn-
wall, brother of the king. Honour courts are not definitely mentioned in
the hundred rolls except for the honour of Peverel.
The most important franchises were held by the abbot of St. Albans and
by the lords of the honours of Wallingford and Peverel. The abbot at
Winslow and Horwood had ' all liberties, pleas of replevin, and the return of
writs,' and the earl of Cornwall had the same franchises in the manors of the
honour of Wallingford, but in the honour of GifFard the return of writs was
not granted, and thus the sheriff and his officers were not excluded from the
carl of Gloucester's lands.
At Fawley William de Valence held all the pleas belonging to the
sheriff, and the abbot of Westminster held the manor of Denham with ' all
liberties and regalia ' by charter.
The great majority of lords did not possess the important franchises, but
a view of frankpledge was held so universally that at one time it must have
been regarded as a manorial right rather than as a royal jurisdiction. At the
same time, however, small payments were made by some lords for this right
to the sheriff or bailiff of the hundred.
The feudal lords held the view of frankpledge for their men, with-
drawing their suit from the sheriff's view, and making their manorial court
a court for the presentment of offences against the peace. The jury of
twelve freeholders was continually dispensed with ; probably on many
manors it could not be obtained, but in spite of this the lord still held
his view. Thus at Kingsey, Cippenham, and Eton, for instance, in the
fourteenth century only the tithing-men made presentments. On the other
hand, in the Fawley courts, the twelve free jurors were regularly called
u Plac. de Quo tTarranto for Bucb. " HtaiJ. R. (Rcc. Com.), i.
2 41 6
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
together and made a separate presentment. Generally they merely said that
everything was well, but occasionally some concealed offence was presented
by them. The business of the court was a review of the tithings and the
presentment of offences against the peace. For certain offences the lord
himself levied fines. He thus was responsible for the condition of the roads,
and dealt with encroachments and poaching. If he also held other franchises,
such as the assizes of bread and ale, and waifs and strays, the numerous
offenders were presented at the view of frankpledge, and finally the tithing-
men gave a fine to the lord de certo from their tithings.
The view of frankpledge was afterwards called the court-leet of the
manor. The name was used once at Fawley, in I377,18 but afterwards the
older designation of the court reappeared. In 1500 there was a court-leet
at Aylesbury, but at Wingrave the name had not been introduced sixty years
later.
Besides the jurisdiction originating in a grant from the crown the lord
of a manor had the right, inherent to the possession of a manor, to hold a
court for his tenants, both free and customary.
In the fourteenth century there was no trace of any divisions of courts
for the two classes of tenants. At that time the free tenants had, when
possible, withdrawn their suit, and the service was specially noted in their
charters if it was to be exacted. It was, however, extremely difficult to
enforce the attendance of the more important tenants, and a long list of
absent free tenants continually began the business of the court, although the
lord could distrain their goods for default. For the customary tenants on
the other hand the manorial court was the only court of justice. The suits
between tenants were so numerous as to suggest that litigation was one of
the few excitements in an otherwise monotonous life. The chief actions
were for debt and trespass, and were decided by the verdict of recognitors.
Pledges for appearance and fines for non-appearance in these suits were levied
by the lord, so that the perquisites of the court were a valuable asset.
At Kingsey,19 for instance, Thomas Chapman summoned William de
Aston to recover a debt of js. William denied that he owed the money, and
put himself ' at law.' He was, however, unable to find the necessary pledges,
and so was held to be convicted of the debt, which Thomas was to recover,
with damages to the same amount.
In another case Henry le Webbe accused John le Cornmonger and his
wife Isabella of having harboured the son of the Cornmonger after he had
killed a pig belonging to the plaintiff, worth %d. The plea failed, however,
since John and Isabella were not held to be responsible, and Henry was fined
for making a false accusation.
In other cases the plaintiffs came to terms before the end of the suit,
and paid a fine to the lord for leave to make a formal agreement.
Cases of disputed inheritance of customary land were brought to the
lord's court and settled by the evidence of the suitors. All grants of lands,
both free and customary, were recorded in the Court Rolls, in the latter case
the actual transfer of the land being made in court, while fines and dues were
also paid to the steward in the same place.
Lastly, fines were exacted in punishment of all encroachments on the
" B.M. Add. R. 27029, rot. 2, i. «• P.R.O. Ct. R. ptfo. 155, No. 15.
42
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
lord's rights. The presentments of the hayward for trespass in the meadows,
for instance, were accepted apparently without any trial, and the offenders
fined. An entry in a roll at Kingsey 20 suggests, however, that the tenants
had some control over the amount of the fines.
Omnes tenentes tarn liberi (quam) nativi consensierunt quod si aliquis eorum convincatur
super dampno facto cum animalibus suis in prato de Suthmcd, nisi quibus dc suo proprio,
quod dabunt domine 6d. nomine pene.
At Fawley" a distinction was made in the presentment of different
offences. In questions concerning land if any point was put to the
suitors for evidence the presentment was made by the whole homage, but on
other occasions the presentment was made only by the bondsmen in matters
that affected none but the unfree suitors of the court.
The manor of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries may be regarded
as an independent community, very nearly self-supporting, having little
communication with other places outside its immediate neighbourhood. Its
population was almost entirely agricultural, but in spite of the similarity of
occupation there was a remarkable difference of status between the members
of the community ; in each manor some of the inhabitants were freemen,
others were serfs or bondsmen, described in the Latin of the time as nativi
domini or villani.
These latter were probably in the majority on most of the Buckingham-
shire manors, but exceptions were to be found. At Beaumond," a very small
manor in Little Missenden, the list of tenants in 1333 comprised eleven
freemen and six bondsmen, but earlier the number of bondsmen may have
been larger, since in the fourteenth century the class was already diminishing.
This difference of status had its counterpart in the system of land tenure.
Within the manor the land was divided into two parts, one of which,
the demesne, was generally cultivated by the lord or his steward for the
maintenance of himself and his household, while the other was granted to
different tenants. Some of these tenants held freely and some in villeinage,
and the distinction in tenure as a rule corresponded to the distinction in
status, but exceptions were to be found, though not as a rule until the personal
disabilities of a villein were disappearing. At Fawley the parson, a freeman,
held a tenement in villeinage, for the services tended to become inherent
upon the tenements apart from their tenants. The free tenants of a manor
were bound to their lord in two ways : there was the personal tie created by
the performance on entry into their land of homage and fealty, by which
they became the ' men ' of their lord, and also the relation created by the
grant of the land in return for money or service.
The different kinds of free-tenure were entirely unconnected with the
size and importance of the tenement, and their characteristics were the same
for a great baron and for the humblest freeholder within a manor. From
the Conquest the right in all land emanated from a grant from the crown,
but the tenants in chief might grant their land to sub-tenants, so that there
might be many lords between the king and the man in actual seisin of a
piece of land.
" P.R.O. Ct. R. ptfo. ijs, No. 15, m. 8. " B.M. Add. R. 27027.
" P.R.O. Ct. R. ptfo. 155, No. *.
43
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
In Buckinghamshire the most common form of tenure in chief was
tenure by military service, the tenant holding his land in return for provid-
ing so many knights to serve in the royal army. In 1 166 23 a full return was
made of the number of knights due from the land of the military tenants in
chief, each of whom had enfeoffed the majority of his knights. Thus Earl
Walter GifFard held no land in demesne (for which he would have to supply
knights to the king's army) within the county, all his quota of service having
been distributed among ninety-six knights, and these knights did service for
their land which they held of him. The size of these grants was very various,
for Hugh Bolebec owed the earl the service of twenty knights, and Geoffrey
the son of William twenty-six knights, but others had only to provide half the
service due from one knight. In other cases, however, part of the land alone
had been granted away ; William Malduit thus provided four and a half
knights from his demesne, depending most probably on the service of members
of his household, and when that was not available employing hired soldiers,
for the word miles at this time meant little more than a mounted soldier.
A tenure in many ways akin to military service was that of serjeanty ;
it was called grand serjeanty when the tenant held of the king, and petty
serjeanty when he held of a mesne lord. The tenant in serjeanty performed
some specially personal service for his lord, and in grand serjeanty he could
alienate no part of his land without leave. Several such tenancies were found
in Buckinghamshire. At ' Aston and Ilmire ' ** John son of Bernard held of
the king by the serjeanty of keeping his hawks ; Thomas son of Bernard 2t
held i oo solidatae of land by the serjeanty marescancie accepitrum domini regis.
The most interesting example, however, was at Aston Clinton. The manor
was held by William de Montagu 26 in grand serjeanty, but under the
previous lord much of the land had been alienated to tenants who paid him
a money rent. This had been done without the king's licence, and when
Robert S7 Passelewe was sheriff part of this rent was recovered to the king
and was paid through the lord of the manor. The demesne land of the
manor had, however, undergone another change, being held by military
tenure by the service of one knight ; but so late as the reign of Edward VI K
the tenants were still paying their rent under the name of serjeanty.
On the foundation of monastic houses the donors as a rule granted their
lands in ' frankalmoin,' i.e. a tenure for which the grantee did spiritual
service only. The most common service performed was that of praying for
the souls of the grantor and his ancestors. By an inquisition the monastery
of Biddlesden 29 was said to hold all its lands in frankalmoin, but not all the
houses were so fortunate. When land was held by military service or
serjeanty, the abbot himself was responsible for its performance and the lands
were distinguished as the abbot's temporalities. The abbot of Missen,denso
thus held land at Aston Clinton by serjeanty ; at Kimble he held 20 hides of
land by military service.
Lastly, freehold land was held by common socage, that is, a money
rent was paid by the tenant. The older monastic feoffments were often made
n Cartae Baronum, Black Bk. of Exch. " Hmd. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 25.
K Ibid. 27. K Hund R. (Rec. Com.), i, 20. " Testa de Nevill (Rec Com.), 256, 257.
18 P R.O. Mins. Accts. Edw. VI. w Harl. MS. 84, £.31.
K Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 20, 31.
44
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
in common socage. The prior of St. Frideswide's,'1 at Oxford, held Upper
Winchendon of the king by ancient feoffment for the sum of £20 a year.
The abbot of St. Albans held land in Oving," paying 5 marks a year, but
the jurors, when the inquisition was taken, stated that no one remembered
the origin of the grant. Lay lords of manors holding for a money rent are
also to be found. Alan Basset held half of Wycombe, including the borough,
for 2OJ. a year, and Towersey was also held by socage in chief of the king.
Socage tenure was, however, most usually found amongst the smaller free-
holders in a manor, and often a few agricultural services were also performed
for the lord ; the tenant did fealty and suit at the manorial court.
The status of a villein brought with it many disabilities, but the con-
ditions described in the law-books" of the time seem to have been much
mitigated in practice. At Ilmer, in a survey taken of the manor in 1337—8,**
there is a list of the most important burdens laid on a villein. He might be
elected to the office of reeve ; on his death his lord received the best four-
legged beast or the produce of the best half-acre of his land chosen by the
lord in place of the beast. His son could not be clerked nor his daughter
married without his lord's consent. He might not sell his horse or ox, nor
leave the fee of his lord without permission ; for, in the language of Bracton
the chief legal commentator of the thirteenth century, he was asc riptus glebae.
That these restrictions were fully enforced the Court Rolls of different manors
afford abundant evidence. At Kingsey s* a man was presented at the court
and fined for having sold his beast without leave. In theory all the posses-
sions used by a villein were said to belong to his lord, but in practice he was
recognized as an owner of property, since instances occur of a villein buying
his freedom of his lord. At Kingsey there is the following entry at a court
held in 1317— 18, ' Et predicta Elena dat domine los. pro se et sequela s* sua
a servitute liberanda . . . .'
The legal disabilities of a villein were also very great, since the royal
courts only recognized his existence through his lord ; and, except in the case
of danger to his life or limb, he had no remedy against any act of his lord.
The Assize Rolls87 of the itinerant justices continually contain cases of land
suits being dismissed because one of the litigants was of servile condition,
owing to his descent from villein ancestors.
Up to this point the disabilities enumerated all resulted from the personal
status of the villein, but they were even more stringent with regard to his
land. Various classes amongst the tenants in villeinage were to be found, but
the terms of their tenure were all of the same type ; unlike the free tenants
they were distinguished from one another by the amount of land attached to
the different tenements. Generally there were two main classes — the cus-
tomary tenants and the cottagers. The latter appear under various names in
Latin, the most common being cotterelli and cottarii, but all refer to the lowest
class of tenants.
There seem to be no records in Buckinghamshire which show how these
two classes developed from those found in the Domesday manors. In the
11 llund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 27. " Ibid. 23.
* Cf. Bracton. Extracts in Digby's History of tht Lam tf Real Properly.
" P.R.O. Rentals and Surv. R. 79. " PRO. Ct. R. ptfo. 155, No. 16.
" Ibid. No. 1 5. * Assize R. Bucks. 54.
45
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
eleventh century there were generally sokemen, who often might leave or sell
their land at pleasure, ' villeins,' ' bordars,' ' cottars,' and ' serfs.' In the
earliest thirteenth-century records38 only villeins and cottagers are to be
found, the other classes having entirely disappeared. A fairly numerous
class of small freeholders had arisen, developed apparently from the sokemen
and some of the Domesday villeins.
In the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries the villein tenements were held
at the will of the lord, and in the latter period also according to the custom
of the manor. Each tenement was granted in full court to the new tenant by
the lord or steward, some outward token passing from hand to hand.39 The
rent and services were agreed upon, but the tenant had no other security
against ejection or the demand for increased services than the custom of the
manor. None of the royal writs and assizes, which protected the freeholder,
could be used by a villein to recover possession of his land. In practice,
however, the rents, fines, and services in each manor were fixed — all tenants
of the same size of holdings performed the same services, and no change
took place in them year after year — for it was of no advantage to the lord,
who depended on his tenants' labour, to make the terms of their tenure
impossible.
One of the most usual forms of grant for customary land is to be found
continually in the Fawley Court Rolls. A messuage and tenement were
granted to a man, his wife, and his son, according to the custom of the manor,
a heriot being taken on the death of each of them.
At other times customary tenements were practically hereditary ; at
Ilmer40 the eldest son possessed the tenement in which his father died on
payment of a fine, and subject to the widow's interest. The tenement, of
course, still had to be surrendered into the lord's hand, but custom decreed
that the son should have it back on payment of a fine for entry.
The tenant in villeinage could not demise or sell his land without leave.
In a roll" of 1331 at Westcott, Richard Audren was fined for having demised
his land at firm without his lord's consent. A few years later Thomas
Benhul 43 had exchanged i acre of land for another, and it was ordered that
the land should be seized into the lord's hand.
The new tenant in some manors did fealty to the lord,*8 though in theory
this was only due from free tenants.
Generally the widow of a villein was entitled to the whole of his tene-
ment for life on payment of the heriot ; this was called her 'free-bench,'44
but the phrase does not appear frequently. At Ilmer *° she held the whole
tenement only so long as she remained a widow ; on her re-marriage she was
entitled to have a house and 4 acres of land of the second-best quality in the
tenement in place of her ' dower.' ' Dower,' properly speaking, was only used
in connexion with freehold, but the similarity of the conditions led to the misuse
of the term in reference to a villein tenement. The similarity, indeed, was
so great that at Beaumond45 the widow of a villein had a customary right to
one-third only of her husband's land, the regular rule for a tenement held by
knight's service. In a few manors another kind of tenancy existed — that of
38 Inq. Hen. Ill, passim. 39 B.M. Add. R. 27030. "" P.R.O. Rentals and Surv. R. 79.
41 P.R.O. Ct. R. ptfo. 155, No. 28. «lbid. no. 28, m. 7.
43 B.M. Add. R. 27026. " P.R.O. Ct. R. ptfo. 155, No. 15. 46 Ibid. No. 2.
46
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
the sokemen of the ancient demesne. Those manors which were in the
hand of the king in Domesday Book were known as the ancient demesne of
the crown, and always preserved certain characteristics which never obtained
in later acquisitions of crown property. In Buckinghamshire there were
only six such manors, Aylesbury, Brill, Wendover, Swanbourne, Princes
Risborough, and Upton ; but amongst the tenants there, as in other counties,
a special class of privileged villeins arose. Their fines were fixed and also
their services, and, still more important, a special writ, the Little Writ of
Right Close, ran in the court of the Exchequer, by which they could sue in
the royal courts for their tenements. In the thirteenth century at Bierton,**
a manor appendant to Aylesbury, certain tenants were summoned to answer
an assize of novel disseisin before the itinerant justices, but they pleaded with
success that they could only be sued by their special writ, being tenants of
the ancient demesne. These rights were continued even after the manor was
granted away from the crown, since Aylesbury and Bierton were then held
by the descendants of Geoffrey FitzPeter.47
The references to the later history of the sokemen of the ancient demesne
are rare, but such tenancies can be traced. At Brill, in 1254,** there were
33 virgates of land held in chief of the king, each of which paid an annual
rent of 5^., and performed five days' specified customary work. This in all
probability was the sokemen's land, for the tenements and services of ordinary
villeins would not have been mentioned, and the exact similarity in the rent
and services due from each virgate would scarcely occur in freehold.
At Aylesbury,*' in 1517, a Court Roll has been preserved in which the
suitors declare ' that all londes and tenements holdyn of the said manor within
the manor and lordshypp afor .... as well charter as copyhold to be
ympleted be writt of ryght clos after the custom. . . .'
At Princes Risborough the fines paid in 1 323-4 M certainly suggest
that their amount was fixed ; twice over 31. was paid on entry to a tenement
and 6s. for maritagium, but no more details are given for other years. As late
as the seventeenth" century, however, the copyholders, who were then the
only kind of customary tenants remaining, claimed that the manor had always
been reputed to be ancient demesne. The fine on death or alienation was
declared to be fixed at the rate of two years' quit-rent or old accustomed rent,
which had been zs. a year.
Another kind of tenancy was to be found on the manors of Langley
Marish " and Cippenham," in the hundred of Stoke. A class of tenants
called ' gavelmen ' are mentioned in the ministers' accounts at both places,
but there is no clue to their exact status. Probably the men held their land
by a tenure on the border-line between freehold and villeinage, but the only
definite statement classes them amongst the customary tenants, though their
services were very slight.
The terms of tenure, whether free or villein, within the manor were
closely connected with the system of agriculture generally known as the
three-field system. The arable land was divided into three large open fields,
* Assize R. 1 188. " Chart. R. 5 John, pt. 117, mm. 6, 7 ; Chan. Inq. p.m. *$ Edvr. I, 50*.
- Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 34. " Arch. \. 98. " P.R.O. Min». Accu. bdle. 761, No. 13.
" Exch. Dcp. Mich. 26 Chas. II, No. 46 ; Mich. 29 Chts. II, No. 18.
" P.R.O. Mint. Accu. bdle. 761, No. 17. " Ibid. bdle. 760, No. 4.
47
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
in which each tenant had so many strips according to the size of his tene-
ment, and the demesne land of the lord lay mixed with that of his tenants.
The rule of cultivation, each field lying fallow in rotation every third year,
was also followed by him. At Ilmer M in 1337—8 the demesne lands were
divided in the following manner : —
The prima sehona contained 35 acres, I rod, iaf perches of land, and was sown with corn.
The secunda sehona contained 62 acres, I rod, 34^ perches, and was sown with beans and peas.
The tertia seisana contained 57 acres, 3 rods, n£ perches, which lay fallow.
They were evidently scattered amongst the tenants' land, and it is
obvious that this division of the fields necessitated a system of cultivation
carried out by all who held strips in the field. The interdependence of the
lord and his tenants in the cultivation of the manor is clearly shown in
Domesday Book, by the careful enumeration of the villeins' ploughs, as well
as of those belonging to the demesne. The three-field system in itself had
no connexion with the manor ; but in Buckinghamshire, as in the greater
part of the country, the tenants of the manor also formed a self-sufficing
agricultural community.
Each tenement in a manor, as a rule, contained a messuage, arable land,
and meadow, with common right in the pastures and woods. The size of
a tenement, when given, generally refers to the arable land only, so that if
a man was described as holding J virgate of land, this would only refer to his
share in the open fields of the manor.
In the greater part of Buckinghamshire the land was divided into hides
and virgates. The tenants were generally classed according to the parts of
a virgate that they held, and virgatarius and semi-virgatarius are the names
found on several manors, while at Ilmer quationarius also appears. The cottarii
were smaller tenants, who held little or no arable land in the common fields,
but only a curtilage or garden.
The cultivation of the demesne land was originally carried out by the
customary tenants, for the performance of agricultural labour was the condi-
tion attached to their tenure. The villeins and cottars worked for their lord
a definite number of days in the week, as well as special boon-days at harvest
and other important seasons. The amount and kind of work varied in every
manor, and in theory was regulated entirely at the will of the lord, but in
practice it varied but little during a long period of years, and was fixed by
the custom of each manor.
At the opening of the fourteenth century a great revolution in manorial
economy was taking place. Instead of performing the actual services, the
villeins commuted them for a money payment, and the lord cultivated his
demesne by wage-paid labourers. The week-work was commuted much
earlier than the boon-work, for naturally the right to a supply of extra
labour at specially important times was a privilege of great value to the lord,
while the week-work was inconvenient to both lord and tenant.
In the ministers' accounts, however, the services are still given, as well
as their equivalent money value, so that the older state of affairs before com-
mutation took place is shown. The customary tenants worked so many days
a week, at any work to which they might be set.
" P.R.O. Rentals and Surv. R. 79.
48
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
In Ditton " there were six customary tenants who worked, from the
last day of May to i August, every Monday, Thursday, and Friday ; in
autumn they worked every day except Saturday, but in both seasons feast-
days and vigils were holidays. At Cippenham " the smaller tenants worked
for the lord every other day in the winter half-year, but not in Christmas,
Easter, and Whitsun weeks ; in summer they worked every day in the week
for the space of five weeks and a day. The whole list of services is very
characteristic of the duties inherent in servile tenure. There were many
customary tenants each holding a quarter, or half, or a whole virgate of land,
but the work was accredited to the land itself, and not to the tenant for the
time being, proving that the custom of the manor had undergone no altera-
tion for a considerable time.
From each virgate one acre was ploughed and harrowed, both at the
winter and Lenten sowing time. Each virgate threshed and winnowed two
bushels of wheat and four bushels of oats, which were carried to the field and
sown. In winter the smaller tenants worked three days a week, and in
summer every day.
In hay harvest one man was sent from each of the i6£ virgates held by
twenty-five tenants to mow and make the hay of the whole manor, which,
it was reckoned, would take seven days. When the hay was carried each
virgate sent two men, probably for four days. Another 3 virgates, held by
four tenants, also sent two men each to carry hay for the four days.
Thirty-four tenants, holding 2of virgates, sent one man from each
virgate for seventeen days to hoe.
In autumn the twenty-five tenants, who held i6j virgates, sent two men
from each virgate, receiving no food from the lord, every other day from the
gules of August till the harvest was finished.
In autumn boon-work was also required of the tenants. The twenty-
five tenants sent three men from each virgate every other day, except
Saturday, receiving one meal a day.
Twelve gavelmen sent twenty-one men to reap for one day in autumn,
with one meal a day.
Thirty tenants, holding 19! virgates, reaped, bound, and cocked in the
fields an acre of wheat and an acre of oats for each virgate.
From harvest to Michaelmas they also worked every other day. Pre-
sumably the tenants did not work for the whole day for the lord as a rule,
for it is expressly specified that in summer and autumn after harvest they
were to work for the whole day, but there is no clue to the number of hours
that they worked at other times.
The meal given at the boon-day is also specified, every two men receiv-
ing bread, beer, meat or fish, to the value of \d. each, and \d. worth of cheese.
In 1322 and 1323" the value of each service per day is given, even of
the boon-work, but by no means all the tenants had commuted their services.
On the boon-days food was still provided, and the entry of money paid for
each separate work was very small ; but on the other hand the number of
tenants who paid an assized rent in place of all services due throughout the
year does not appear in the account.
u P.R.O. Mins. Accts. bdle. 760, No. 1 8. The account it dated I* Edw. II.
" Ibid. No. 4. " Ibid.
* 49 7
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Generally, however, in the fourteenth century, even in the list of
services such daily work as was done at Ditton and Cippenham is very rare.
The tenants did not go to perform any work that might be required of them
by the lord's bailiff, but their work had become a certainty, whether plough-
ing, hoeing, reaping, &c., so that one of Bracton's proofs of unfree service,
its uncertain nature, had nearly disappeared.
The different kinds of boon-work found on the Buckinghamshire
manors are interesting. At Cuddington M there was a customary service of
benerth, which obliged the tenants to sow wheat and barley for their lord ;
they received food from him, since in the reign of Henry V an economy in
the expenses of this food was effected by employing the farm-servants on
the boon-work.
At Langley Marish " benerth also was performed, and the custom of
ploughing the meadow. A boon-day at Islehampstead Chenies 80 was called
a 'Love-bone,' but nothing is said as to its purpose. At harvest time
at Langley Marish two boon-days were called 'Water Bedrypes,' at which
no beer was given as at an ordinary bedrype at Missenden. In other manors
belonging to Missenden Abbey" the harvest boon-day was called the Magna
precaria Abbathi.
The manorial tenants also made various customary payments for privi-
leges allowed by the lord. Pannage'8 for the right of sending their pigs into
the lord's woods was paid frequently, and the same payment was called
'Garshanese' both at Langley Marish63 and at Ditton.64 Derfold and bensed
are also mentioned at Langley ;65 the latter appears at Wendover,66 when one
pint of wheat from every virgate of land held by certain tenants was paid at
Martinmas.
At Brill a yearly payment was made of 4^. 6</., called variously ' Cleg-
gavel ' 67 or ' Clan gavel.' 68
At Monks Risborough69 certain tenants brewed two gallons of beer,
which they gave to the lord of the manor under the name of 'Tolcestre.' In
the fifteenth century the payment was commuted, each tenant giving ^d.
instead of the beer. In many cases in Henry Vs reign, however, some of
the tenants were presented at the manorial court by the bailiff for not having
paid the tolcestre.
Vaccage 70 or ' lactagium ' was continually paid, but perhaps it can
hardly be described as a customary payment, being in no way connected with
tenure. The lord's cows seem to have been leased to various tenants at so
much per head per year, the lessee having the calf and milk ; the same
system was followed with sheep, and in one instance with geese and fowls.
Agistment n was also paid for leave to pasture cattle in the lord's park.
This was sometimes paid by a whole township to obtain such rights in a
forest or chase. Thus the inhabitants of Salden 72 paid agistment for pasture
in Whaddon Chase.
68 P.R.O. Mins. Accts. bdle. 760, Nos. 15, 16. M Ibid. bdle. 761, No. 17.
* Ibid. No. 4. 61 Harl. MS. 3688.
" P.R.O. Mins. Accts. bdle. 764, Nos. 7, 4 ; ibid. bdle. 760, No. 4 ; Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 34.
68 P.R.O. Mins. Accts. bdle. 761, No. 17. M Ibid. bdle. 760, No. 18, « Garsanese.'
66 Ibid. bdle. 761, No. 17 ; bdle. 764, No. 1 1800. 65 P.R.O. Rentals and Surv. R. 85.
67 P.R.O. Mins. Accts. bdle. 759, No. 30. «• Ibid. bdle. 759, No. 31. » Monks Risborough Ct. R.
70 P.R.O. Mins. Accts. bdle. 760, No. 14 ; bdle. 761, No. n; bdle. 763, No. »6.
" Ibid. bdle. 763, No. 26. " Ibid. No. 29.
50
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
On the other hand certain payments were made by the lord by custom
to his tenants. He paid ' Medram ' at Cippenham " at harvest time, and
* dyncr silver ' when the park was mown, but this must have been instead of
the food at a boon-day. At Ilmer,7* ' Medeship ' and 'Cartlof had been
paid, after all carrying had been finished at harvest, to seventeen customary
tenants, who received amongst them 6J. worth of cheese, and i()d. in money;
the custom, however, had been given up some years before 1343." At
Whaddon " medship was given entirely in money, 2s. 6d. being divided
amongst all the customary tenants.
At the time when the manorial records of Buckinghamshire begin, at
the end of the thirteenth century, the commutation of all customary services
had already taken place to a considerable extent. The change probably
arose from motives of convenience, as the old system was unwieldy, and the
tenants must have found considerable difficulty in working for the lord and
cultivating their own land at the same time, especially on the smaller holdings.
The lord, too, must have been served by very half-hearted and unwilling
workers, so that the change would be advantageous to both lord and tenants.
The effects were, however, far-reaching, and were indeed one of the main
causes of the break-up of the manorial system. The tenants had to be
replaced by farm servants working for a money wage, and not necessarily
holding land. These might be of servile birth, but the restrictions on their
liberty were greatly lessened when disconnected with the land.
To give any exact dates to the process of commutation is difficult, since
they varied on each manor and have to be sought for in records drawn up
with a different object. The earliest minister's account comes from Brill in
the hundred of Ashendon. In 1250—1 77 the expenses include the payment
of all work connected with the harvest, but both winter and autumn boon-
work was done by the tenants. The men with definite occupations were not
paid with money, but by the remittance of their rents, so that they were
tenants, not wage-paid labourers. On this manor there were 33 virgates,78
probably those held by the sokemen of the ancient demesne, from which only
five days' service was due to the lord in the year ; hence some other arrange-
ment instead of the ordinary system of work must have been made very early.
At the beginning of the reign of Edward I, however,79 all the men but one were
paid a yearly wage, extra men being specially hired in harvest-time, and in
1313*° the entry of operibus custumariis venditis appears amongst the receipts. In
other manors in the same district, on one side of the accounts there are payments
for work done by labourers, and on the other entries of ' assised rents ' and
' works sold,' and each kind of work in the lists of services has its fixed
equivalent in money. At Westcott81 all the work at harvest was paid for in
money in 1336 and 1337, and a tenant held a small holding of a cottage and
curtilage in villeinage for a rent of i id. a year and two days' work in autumn.
At Ilmer8' the services were valued and many tenants were paying commu-
tation money to the lord. In the Aylesbury district the same change had
also been taking place. The sum of money paid instead of services was often
" P.R.O. Mini. Accts. bdle. 760, No. 3. " P.R.O. Rentals and Surv. R. 79.
'• P.R.O. Mint. Accts. bdle. 761, No. ^. n Ibid. bdle. 763, No. 30.
" Ibid. bdle. 759, No. 28. " Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 34.
" P.R.O. Mins. Accts. bdle. 759, No*. 29-30. * Ibid. bdle. 759, No. 31.
•' Ibid. bdle. 763, No. 19. " Ibid. bdle. 761, No. 2.
51
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
small compared with the value of the whole work, but some men would have
been paying a new and increased rent covering everything due from their
tenements. At Beaumond 8S nine tenants held their tenements for a money rent
for all services, but it is doubtful whether they were holding in villeinage or
not. One cottage and curtilage seems to have been a customary tenement,
but the tenant was not included in the list of the lord's bondsmen. In an
extent M of the manors of Missenden Abbey none of the tenants performed
more than fifteen days' service in the year, and generally only four days' mow-
ing, six days' hay-making, four days' reaping, and attendance at the great
boon-day were required. As a rule they were paying several shillings as rent
and were presumably customary tenants, when heriot was paid, but no
distinctions in tenure are actually made.
At Wendover 85 men were hired to help with the hay, and all reaping
was paid for by the acre in 1338.
In Stoke Hundred, at Cippenham in 1318 and 1319 8* apparently all the
regular work was commuted, but some thrashing was done by the tenants,
and at Langley,87 Ditton, and Datchet88 commutation was practically com-
plete except for boon-work. In Datchet certain work had been ' of old '
commuted for a fixed sum of money paid at Michaelmas. Whaddon, in
Cottesloe Hundred, is the only manor of which the minister's accounts are
preserved in which commutation does not seem to have taken place before
the middle of the fourteenth century, for there were no farm servants nor
had the tenants paid money instead of performing their services until 1356
and I357-89
Besides arable land the tenants of the manors held meadow and rights
of common in the pastures and waste lands. The meadow contained both
the separate inclosure of the lord and the common meadow used by both free
and customary tenants, but trespassing in the lord's meadow with cattle was
an offence presented at the manorial courts with extraordinary regularity.
The system seems to have been to inclose the "meadow until a certain date,
when all the hay would have been carried, and then to throw it open for the
cattle of all the tenants. At Kingsey, in I322,90 the whole body of cus-
tomary tenants had broken this rule, and were presented in the court ' pro
herba apperlata contra consuetudine in prato de la More.' The meadow land
was in some places distributed among the different tenants by lot, but though
probably the custom was an old one, the existing instances are found in later
records. At Aylesbury,91 in a rental of the reign of Henry VIII, two copy-
holders held pieces of meadow land that had come to them by lot. Rights
of common in the pasture lands were also attached to different tenements,
but the tenants in villeinage could only claim them by custom, which was
very generally recognized. In Bernwood Forest and Whaddon Chase the
inhabitants of the neighbouring manors had rights of common for their
cattle, and others again could obtain leave by a small payment. This was
the common custom in manors where the lord had inclosed his woods or
parks, agistamentum for cattle being a very frequent entry in the accounts.
83 P.R.O. Ct. R. ptfo. 155, No. 2. " Harl. MS. 3688.
85 P.R.O. Mins. Accts. bdle. 793, No. 8. " Ibid. bdle. 760, No. 3.
87 Ibid. bdle. 761, No. 17. " Ibid. bdle. 760, No. 18. » Ibid. bdle. 764, No. I.
90 P.R.O. Ct. R. ptfo. 155, No. 15. 9l P.R.O. Rentals and Surv. R. \.
52
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
In many of the pasture lands the tenants had rights of entry for a certain
number of cattle according to the size of their tenements, or for a certain
period of the year only. At Ilmer93 there was a pasture which was separate
from i May to St. John the Baptist's day, and common for the rest of the
year. At Beachampton9* there were three kinds of pasture in the manor —
first, the separate pasture of the lord ; secondly, pasture that was inclosed from
the Annunciation to St. John the Baptist's Day or the feast of St. Peter ad
Vincula ; and, lastly, pasture that was separate for two years and was then
thrown open to the commoners for the third year. At Newport Pagnel,
in the Bury Field the burgesses enjoyed rights of common for a certain
number of cattle, in later records, but the right must have been of ancient
origin.
In the woods belonging to some manors the tenants had also rights of
gathering firewood or wood for repairing their tenements. Such a system of
agriculture, carried on in common, and the work on the demesne lands,
performed by the tenants, entailed a considerable amount of organization.
As a rule, the lord put a bailiff or steward in charge of the manor, not only
to hold the court, but to farm the demesne land and watch over the lord's
interests. The labour services were supervised by one of the tenants, who
was yearly elected for the purpose. He was called the reeve, and in the
fourteenth century was chosen from among the bondsmen of the lord, among
whom his duties lay for the most part. The obligation of serving in this
office was specially mentioned at Ilmer94 amongst the customs of the tenants
in villeinage, and the reeve" was elected in full court by the customary
tenants only. The office was naturally an unpopular one, for its duties were
laborious, and constantly a fine was paid to the lord for exemption from the
service. One of the numerous instances in the court rolls occurs at Westcott,
when Thomas Benhul in order to be quit of the office paid a fine of 6s. 8</.
to his lord, a considerable sum of money at the time, especially when the
privileges attached to the office, the remission of rent and services during the
year, are taken into consideration. Unpopular though it was, the other
tenants certainly seemed to have supported the reeve in seeing that no one
escaped doing the work due from their land. At Kingsey the reeve and the
whole homage at the court** presented that a certain man had gone to work
for strangers throughout the autumn, and would not serve the lord when he
was required to do so by the reeve.
In spite of the commutation of services the election of the reeve con-
tinued to form part of the business of the manor courts, but his work must
have gradually diminished.
How far the tenants settled the arrangements for the common cultiva-
tion of the fields for themselves, or how far they were compelled to follow
the convenience of the lord's bailiff, is difficult to determine. The only place
where the tenants could meet was the manor court, and there the presence of
the freeholders who held land in the common fields was some protection for
the customary tenants against possible aggression by the lord. In different
manors by-laws were made, but no evidence appears in the rolls as to their
origin. At Kingsey there are various references to the 'statute of the
* P.R.O. Rentals and Surv. R. 79. * Ibid. 800. " Ibid. 79.
" P.R.O. Ct. R. ptfo. 155, No. z8. " Ibid. No. 17.
53
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
harvest' ; in I32297 the following entry was enrolled: ' statutum autumpnalim
concessum est quod in omnibus articulis suis ob . . . sub . . . domine tam
liberos quam natives.' At another court 98 two men were presented for break-
ing the statute, for the preservation of which two custodi autumpni had been
elected. In the other rolls, however, the orders are confined to questions
connected with the demesne, and hence take the form of a precept of the
steward or bailiff.
Another officer who superintended the work of the manor in the lord's
interest was the ' messor ' or hayward ; his chief duties were to safeguard
the lord's hay from the depredations of the tenants' cattle and to present their
owners at the following court. In the Fawley Court Rolls in the latter part
of the fourteenth century nearly every roll contains a long list of the present-
ments of the hayward. He was, however, merely one of the lord's servants,
as a rule receiving wages ; although in the earlier accounts he was often a
tenant whose rent was remitted in payment for his service as hayward, he was
in no instance elected by the suitors of the court.
While the system of customary service to the lord was in this state of
transition, the country was devastated by the most terrible of the visitations
of the plague, known in England as the Black Death. So great was the
destruction of life that the years 1348 and 1349 stand out as a landmark in
the economic history of the county.
The plague reached England in 1348, but in Buckinghamshire it was at
its worst from May to September in the next year. The rate of mortality
can be realized from the number of ecclesiastical appointments made at the
time. In 1349 the number of deaths among the clergy reached a total of
seventy-seven."
The same devastation fell upon the manorial tenants. At Salden,100 for
instance, the mill was empty, and all the tenants, both free and villein, were
dead except John Robyn, who held one virgate in bondage.
There are unfortunately exceedingly few records of the next few years,
and still scarcer are those that form a series both before and after 1 349. The
Whaddon minister's accounts are the fullest for these years, but the manor
was to some extent exceptional, owing to the late commutation of services and
appearance of labourers. In 1 348 101 there is a detailed roll, but no wages
were paid at all for agricultural labour, and all hoeing and mowing and some
at least of the autumn work was performed by the tenants. The only work
definitely commuted was that of collecting nuts, certain tenants having paid
\d. for every time the service was due ; in the following year,102 when the
plague was at its height in the county, the roll is nearly a blank. The next
account extant is for I35i103; there were still no stipends paid to farm
servants, but the money values of all services are given. Five years I0* later
there were eight servants paid by the year, and their wages form an item in
the accounts until I364.106 At Burton,108 where the same period is covered,
the accounts give no details at all, but simply record the whole profits paid to
the steward at Whaddon. At Kingsey there are three accounts, and several
" P.R.O. Ct. R. ptfo. 155, No. 15. M Ibid. No. !8.
" Line. Epis. Reg. Bishop Gynwell's Inst. 1347-61. 10° Chan. Inq. p.m. 23 Edw. Ill, pt. I, No. 21.
101 P.R.O. Mins. Accts. bdle. 763, No. 27. 1M Ibid. No. 23.
los Ibid. No. 29. 1M Ibid. No. 30.
"» Ibid. bdle. 764, No. 5. IM Probably Bierton, nr. Aylesbury.
54
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
for Cheddington, at different dates throughout the century, which show to
some extent how far the manors were affected by the Black Death, but as
a rule the practice of writing the accounts with full details stops rather abruptly
towards the close of the century.
Everywhere the result of the Black Death must have been a scarcity of
labour. From other sources, outside the records of the county, we know
that the labourers demanded higher wages, as they realized that they were in
a position to impose terms on their lords. They were answered by the Statute
of Labourers, fixing the maximum rate of wages that might be given or
received. The records in Buckinghamshire, giving ratio of wages, as a whole
do not show that a great rise was effected immediately after the Black Death,
but specially in the case of agricultural labourers it is difficult to get enough
instances to show what took place all over the county. In the hundreds of
Buckingham, Newport, Desborough, and Burnham there are no records of
such wages at all. Probably the conditions in Desborough Hundred differed
but little from those in the neighbouring districts, but the two northern
hundreds may have presented rather a different state of affairs.
It has already been shown that commutation of services had taken place
to a considerable degree before the Black Death, and that wage-paid labourers
were doing a large share of the work on the demesne lands in the thirteenth
century. At Brill107 in 1250—1 there were two ploughmen, one driver, and
one shepherd, but of these only the two drivers received money wages. A
few years later,108 however, one of the ploughmen and the shepherd were paid
in money instead of their rents being remitted ; and in autumn various extra
men were hired, such as a reaper and carter. In most manors a carter was
hired throughout the year, who, with a cowherd, swineherd, and dairyman,
completed the ordinary list of farm-servants. The general rule was to pay
the servants partly in money and partly in corn, and presents were often
added at Christmas and Easter. At some places men were employed only
for half the year,109 and frequently they received a very small sum of money
in winter.110
The carters and ploughmen were the most highly paid labourers,
the drivers receiving a little less. The shepherd was the most important of
the herds, and it is interesting to note that he was far more frequently
employed than either the cowherd or the swineherd.
A careful examination of their wages points to a very slight change in
the second part of the fourteenth century, very far from the assertion that
wages were at least doubled. In Edward I's reign at Beaumond m some of
the wages were higher than those to be found until an account for Cudding-
ton in Henry V's reign, but the driver at the earlier date received less than
the usual wages, which varied from 3^. 6</. to 4*. 6</.ni in the reign of
Edward III. The ploughmen usually received 6s., the dairyman jj. to 4_r.,
and the swineherd 3*. to 4J. 6</. except at Cuddington, where the rate of
wages was higher. These variations did not occur to so great an extent in
different years as on different manors.
l" P.R.O. Mini. Accts. bdle. 759, No. 28. "• Ibid. No. 29.
'" Ibid. No. 21, the swineherd at 'Bourton' ; ibid. bdle. 761, No. 9, the shepherd at King»ey.
"* Ibid. bdle. 759, No. 21. At ' Bourton ' the wages in winter were only half what was paid in summer.
"' Ibid. No. 15.
111 Farm servants who were paid by the year also received board and lodging.
55
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
A list of the Cuddington wages affords an instance where the wages
seem to have been unaffected by the Black Death, but the list at Cheddington
gives evidence of an entirely opposite effect.
Servant .
Carter
Ploughman
Shepherd .
Swineherd .
Dairyman .
Hayward .
Cowherd .
CUDDINGTON : WAGES BY THE YEAR
1336-7 U1 1380-1 m
6s. 8d.
6s.
6s.
6s.
6s.
6s.
35. 6d.
6s.
y. 6d.
I4i6-i7116
6s. 8d.
(master) IOJ.
(master) 8s.
2nd 8s.
2 others 6s. each
IOS.
6s.
6s. 8d.
CHEDDINGTON : WAGES BY THE YEAR
1298 '"
mi I17
HAI 118
\i6i "'
I 3 7 C "°
1 i ' l
'341
1 j"j
'375
Autumn Winter
t. d. i. d.
For I year
i. d.
Summer Winter
i. </. d.
Mich. Lady Day
». </. j. J.
Mich. Lady Day
!. d. 1. d.
Ploughman ....
„ (^d) . .
Driver
I 6} « •
3 o 14.
{'_•)
4. 4-
1° { i
1 O A.
60 3 o
4. O 2O
80 68
c 6 co
3 6 i 6
C O
A. O 6
Shepherd
3 o i 6
4- O
3O 4.
CO 2O
50 20
Dairyman ....
Swineherd ....
36 i o
i o 06
4 °
2 6
3 o 4
i 6 06
5 o "' —
3 o for I year
50 20
26 i 6
Thus at Cheddington there is a considerable rise between the years 1341
and 1363, but fourteen years later the wages were more than doubled, and at
Weedon,123 in the same hundred, there is a rise in the wages between i 377
and 1382.
At Whaddon, in the same hundred, the accounts present rather a peculiar
case, since no wages had been entered in the accounts till after the Black
Death. In i356,m however, the wages were 4.1-. Sd. for the ploughman,
dairyman, carter, and swineherd, and 6s. for the drivers, but no rise took
place before I363-134
On other manors in Aylesbury Hundred the rate seems to have been
similar to that at Cuddington, but in the hundreds of Ashendon and Stoke
the rate was slightly lower. At Kingsey m there were no carters, but seven
servants going with the carts and ploughs in winter. The wages for all
seven were 13*. for the half-year in 1360, so that each man received on an
average a little more than is. lod. The ploughman had the privilege of
ploughing his land with his lord's ploughs, and so received no wages. At
113 P.R.O. Mins. Accts. bdle. 760, No. 13. '" Ibid. No. 14. ui Ibid. No. 10.
116 Mins. Accts. belonging to Merton College, Oxford, rot. 5531. "7 Ibid. rot. 5541.
118 Ibid. rot. 5570J. "9 Ibid. rot. 5589. ' uo Ibid. rot. 5561.
121 In the previous year the dairyman received 5/. at Michaelmas and zs. at Lady Day. Hence the
omission in 1363 of the latter payment is probably a mistake.
128 Thorold Rogers, Hist, of Agric. and Prices, ii. m P.R.O. Mins. Accts. bdle. 763, No. 30.
124 Ibid. bdle. 764, No. 5. '» Ibid. bdle. 761, No. 8.
56
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
Ilmer wages were not paid to all the labourers till 1343. In the previous
year }2S the reaper, swineherd, and a maid-servant were paid in money, but
the carter, ploughman, and two drivers received corn in the field, each
receiving the produce of a certain number of acres of wheat and beans. This
payment was altered, and the carter, ploughman, driver, and shepherd were
paid id. a day and the dairyman \\d. a day, but this is the only case
where the regular servants were paid by the day.
Other workmen were employed on the different manors, and were generally
paid by the day. The blacksmith, however, had either a tenement, free of
rent or services, or was paid by the piece. Occasionally a contract was made
for the whole work needed for the demesne; at Wendover1*7 36^. and
four bushels of wheat were given in payment of all work connected with
four ploughs, the cart-horse and mill-horse. Reaping and mowing was
generally paid by the acre, but carpenters, thatchers, and sawyers were paid
by the day. The carpenters received ^d. or ^d. throughout the fourteenth
century, but the higher rate was more frequent, and the rise of \d. took
place, as a rule, some years before the Black Death. At Cheddington 1J8 the
carpenter was paid zd. a day in 1342 and 1344, but before that the usual
rate was 4^., and in no other place was he paid less than ^d. In 1372 the
rate rose to 6</., but afterwards dropped again to $d. ; and at Cuddington Ift
no change had taken place as late as 1417. The other workmen were so
frequently paid for themselves and a labourer that it is impossible to find out
their exact wages. The thatcher was paid id. or ^d. during the century,
but the higher rate in this case was more common towards the end of
Edward Ill's reign. Other labourers — digging, forking hay, hedging — had
usually 2d. or ^d. a day. Both rates appear throughout the fourteenth cen-
tury, but in the cases of these labourers a rise had taken place before this
period, for no men at all receive the wage of id. a day for any work — the rate
paid in a few instances about 1280. Women rarely received more than \d.
a day, and frequently only \d. or \d. At Whaddon 13° several women
received zd. a day, but there is no other evidence to show whether a general
rise took place in women's wages after the Black Death or whether this was an
isolated instance.
For the fifteenth century there are practically no records of the wages
of agricultural labourers, but during the building of Eton College the
wage-books of the clerk of the works give the wages paid for stone-masons,
carpenters, and their labourers. In the estimates for the college buildings "
in 1447—8 the free masons were paid 3-r. a week ; other skilled workmen
had bd. a day, and ordinary labourers ^d. These rates show that there had
been a considerable rise during the fifteenth century, and may have been
lower than in other parts of the country, for the men were engaged for
a long piece of work, and also had their tools found by the king. Several
times men were fined for losing their tools, an extensive system of fines
being adopted for the punishment of all small offences, such as telling
tales, playing, and most frequently for late-coming. At times common
labourers received as much as $d. a day.
"" P.R.O. Mini. Accts. bdle. 761, No. ». "* Ibid. bdle. 763, No. 1 1.
'" Thorold Rogers, Hiit. of Agric. and Pritti, it.
•» P.R.O. Mins. Accti. bdle. 760, No. 16. •" Ibid. bdle. 764, No. 3.
m R. Willii, Arch. Hiit. ofVniv. of Cambridge and Eton (ed. 1886).
a 8
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Besides commutation of services various other movements brought about
a change in the manorial economy. The lay lords no longer lived on their
manors, but they had to a great extent become absentee landlords, either
belonging to the court nobility or else serving abroad in the French wars.
In either case money was needed rather than agricultural produce, and often
it was far more profitable to grant away part of the demesne to various
tenants than for the bailiff to farm the whole land. Hence not only had
the need for personal service disappeared, but the servile status of the villein
was unnecessary since the lord no longer needed to keep a closer control over
him than over a free tenant. At the end of the fourteenth century there was
but little difference between a villein and a free man. He cultivated his
own land without interference, and the Court Rolls by custom secured him
possession of his land. He had also gained recognition in the statutes and
laws of the realm ; the Statute of Winchester especially, which enforced
the duty of all men being trained to carry arms. To some extent it was a
revival of the fyrd, and made no distinction between the free and unfree in
regard to their responsibility for the defence of the nation. On the other
hand, no definite national act of manumission took place, and all the
restrictions on customary tenants were enforced, if they were profitable to
the lord. After the Black Death they were probably enforced even more
stringently than before, and in the manorial courts no opportunity was ever
missed of exacting heriots, merchets, fines for entry and for leaving the lord's
fee, and various other payments — all causing greater discontent as the position
of the villeins in other ways improved.
The heaviness of these fines was probably the foundation of the cry for
freedom raised in the Peasants' Revolt in 1381. If the poll-tax, which was
the first tax to fall directly on the serfs, led to the actual rising of the men of
Kent, in other parts of the country the demand for freedom was the main
rallying cry of the rebels. The men of Buckinghamshire do not seem
to have joined the revolt, although the rebels were numerous in the
neighbouring county of Hertford. The Court Rolls early in the reign of
Richard II show no evidence of any disturbance, nor do they record the
flight of more men than usual from the manor. Little effort seems to have
been made to reclaim the fugitives beyond distraining their relatives to
produce them at the next court, a course of action which seems to have
had singularly little effect. At Whaddon, the smith, a tenant whose rent
and services due from half a virgate of land were remitted, left the manor in
1381, and did not do the necessary blacksmith's work. That he joined the
revolt is a pure surmise, but if the Buckinghamshire villeins took any part in
it, it must have been in such isolated instances as that of John Beaufitz,132
the smith of Whaddon.
The emancipation of the serfs obtained at Smithfield from the young
king was repudiated by Parliament, and the hope of freeing themselves at one
stroke from the remaining disabilities of serfdom and customary tenure had
disappeared. The rebels in many places had burnt the Court Rolls of their
manors, considering that these were the only witnesses of their ancestry, but
it was to the rolls that finally they owed the security of their tenure. The
repudiation was carried out by the two houses of Parliament, composed
'" P.R.O. Mins. Accts. bdle. 763, No. 8.
58
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
mainly of important landholders, the one class to whom serfdom was still of
some importance, but their action was in direct contradiction to the general
tendency of the time. The action of the law courts, always jealous of
private jurisdiction, especially made for freedom, and so without any great
Act of Parliament the customary tenants gradually obtained protection for
their tenure in the national courts of justice. A new formula was introduced
when a tenement was granted to a fresh tenant ; he held by * copy of court
roll ' or simply ' by copy,' as well as by the custom of the manor. At
Fawley IM the phrase first appears, in a roll of the year 1 409, but it is rare in
the beginning of the fifteenth century ; at Langley Marish in 1483 it had
become the ordinary designation for customary tenements, a presentment ls*
running as follows : * Et quod Johannes Waltys qui de domino tenuit diversas
terras tarn libere tam per rotulum curie . . . .' The copyholders gained
protection for their land by a writ in the royal courts, but the old dues were
still exacted. The sokemen of the ancient demesne were included among the
copyholders, though at Aylesbury m the little writ of right was mentioned as
part of the custom of the manor in Henry VII's reign. They clung to the
certainty of their fines, however, a privilege which was not attained by
ordinary copyholders unless they made special terms with the lords. The
security of copyhold tenure did not extend to the grants made of demesne
land at the will of the lord, but only to the old customary tenements, for in
various instances in the ministers' accounts ls* of the sixteenth century the
distinction is drawn carefully between tenants by copy and tenants at will.
If throughout the fourteenth century the tendency was towards greater
freedom, and in consequence greater prosperity amongst the manorial tenants,
there was a counter-movement which tended to their disadvantage. All the
tenants had rights of common for their cattle in the commons and wastes of
the manor, rights attached to the tenements that they held. The free
tenants had a proprietary right in their common, just as much as in the
other parts of their tenements ; but the customary tenants, whatever may have
been the origin of their common rights, were in legal theory only allowed to
enjoy them as an act of grace on the part of their lords. The importance of
such pasture rights was unequalled in an agricultural community, and hence
any inclosing of commons or waste lands caused great hardship to the
tenants. The fresh incentive to inclosure was the increased profit to be
made from sheep-farming, which was widely taken up by both ecclesiastical
and lay lords in the fourteenth century, though the movement had begun a
century earlier. Large tracts of country were amassed into one hand and
turned into separate pasture land, so that the difficulties in the way of arable
farming, due to the insufficient supply of labour, were overcome.
As early as I254137 there were complaints of the inclosing of parks in
various manors in the three hundreds of Newport. At Brill 1M the tenants
had been evicted by the firmer of the manor from their right of common in
a wood, for which they had already been accustomed to pay 50*. a year, and
had never made any default in their payment. The complaints grew so loud
in the reign of Edward I that the matter was dealt with in detail in the Statute
•» B. M. Add. R. 17150.
'" Arch. \. 98.
'" HunJ. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 38.
114 P.R.O. Ct. R. bdle. i, No. 6.
"• P.R.O. Min». Accu. 37-38 Hen. VIII, bdle. 56, L.R.
•"Ibid. 21.
59
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
of Merton. The influence of the lords was, however, so great that only certain
restrictions were placed on their powers of inclosure ; each incloser was
forced to leave a sufficiency of pasture for the tenants of the manor, but as he
was generally also the lord of the manor, he had the right to settle what
was a sufficiency for the greater number of his tenants.
In most manors of which records remain in Buckinghamshire the lord
had inclosed a park, which generally contained pasture, meadow, and often
a warren. The increase of hunting rights was a further grievance, which
interfered with the tenants' common rights. At Newport Pagnel 13'
complaints were made in the Hundred Rolls that there was a warren in the
common field of the town, but that was a case of rare and excessive oppression.
At Fawley, Langley Marish, Cippenham, Princes Risborough, Hanlee in
Beachampton, and Olney there were inclosed parks, but on all these manors
the bailiff still cultivated part at least of the demesne as arable land, for the
sale of corn continually forms part of the receipts in the bailiff's accounts, and
it is improbable that much land at this time was turned into pasture, but only
that commons were inclosed.
In the parks themselves the tenants generally had pasturage on payment
of a yearly sum of money, but if previous to the inclosure they had had free
common rights, this would naturally entail a considerable loss to the tenants.
Licence to inclose, after the statute, had to be obtained from the king.
In 1337 uo Sir John de Molins had leave to impark his woods in Ilmer with
100 acres of pasture in Beaconsfield, Burnham, and Cippenham. Eight years
later he had leave to inclose more woods with the 300 acres of pasture
adjoining them.
The movement was followed not only by the lords of the manor but by
the freeholders, and more especially by the firmors, to whom the lords leased
the demesne lands. Still in the thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries
sheep-farming was carried on to a large extent by the bailiffs of the manors,
for the sale of wool and fleeces was frequently entered in their accounts.
From a survey141 of various manors, assigned to the reign of Henry III,
the number of sheep is given on three royal manors, Brill, Aylesbury, and
Lectun ; but there is no account of the sale of the wool. In Stoke Hundred,
at Cippenham, Langley Marish, and Ditton, the bailiff sold considerable
quantities of wool ; at Islehampstead Chenies the lord had a fulling mill,
the rent of which had been increased in 1324—5, but in the hundreds of
Ashendon practically no wool appears in the accounts, except at Brill in the
thirteenth century. In the hundred of Aylesbury not much wool was sold,
but at Wendover there was a fulling mill in 1339—40, and about three
hundred sheep belonging to the lord.
The greatest quantities of wool were sold on three manors in Cottesloe
Hundred — at Whaddon, Cheddington, and Weedon.
The sheep-farming was probably accompanied by an increase in the
manufacture of cloth within the county. Elsewhere efforts were made to
improve the kinds of cloth made in England, and in Wycombe,142 at least,
amongst the Buckinghamshire towns, the burgesses were anxious to induce
weavers to settle in the town, by granting them immunity from certain fines
139 Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 40. 14° Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, iv, 546.
141 P.R.O. Rentals and Surv. R. 74. 10 Ledger of borough, 1316.
60
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
exacted from foreign tradesmen. Fullers and dyers were also to be found in
the town, but the cloth made was probably very coarse, since Buckingham-
shire wool compared unfavourably with that grown in the neighbouring
counties.
The tenants and farmers, so far as it was possible, also carried on the
more profitable system of farming.
In the latter part of the fourteenth century the practice was increasing
of letting out the demesne lands at firm, both arable and pasture land. At
Whaddon, where the sale of wool had previously formed a considerable item
in the bailifFs accounts, the meadows and pastures were all at firm in
1381— 2,1*3 and in other places parts of the pastures had been let still
earlier to both free and customary tenants. At Fawley lu trespasses in the
lord's pasture were very common, and quite small tenants were presented for
sixty and forty sheep at a time, and they evidently made serious encroach-
ments on the separate pasture, all tenants in one instance being ordered to
remove their cattle from the lord's pasture.
With regard to the manors that were in the king's hands in the fifteenth
century, the common practice was to let the whole manor at firm, sometimes
to one man, sometimes to a number of tenants. The firmors did not hold
the manorial court, or even receive its dues ; hence they had but little
interest in the customary tenants, and their chief object would be to make
as much profit as possible from the land itself by sheep-farming.
The tenants on some manors could also get leave to inclose certain
pieces of land on payment of a small fine to the lord, but it does not seem
to have been very commonly done. More frequently the inclosure was made
without leave ; and, though complaints were frequently made in the court,
little was done, unless the encroachment affected the demesne pastures, for
the presentment was made in court after court of the same offence.
The prices given in the accounts show that the value of wool increased
substantially in the fourteenth century. In many cases the price is given by
the fleece and not by the weight, so that it is impossible to compare them on
different manors and at different times.
The price of sheep also affords some information on the profits that
were made by sheep-farming. In three instances of the survey of the stock
on the royal manors in the reign of Henry III1*' all sheep are valued at 4^., but
in the fourteenth century the price had risen very considerably. The lowest
prices were 1 \d. at Cippenham,1*6 and is. id. at Wendover for ewes,147 while
at Whaddon the price rose to 2s. 8</. for sheep,1*8 but generally they brought
in about 2s. a head.
The records of the fifteenth century are very meagre as to details,
since the accounts merely record the payments of rents, &c., and contain
nothing as to agriculture or stock. Inclosing must, however, have gone on
apace, but the complaints did not become loud enough to influence the
government to interfere until the close of the century. The rentals and
ministers' accounts, however, show that many tenants had been evicted from
their land, and that many tenements were gathered into one hand. They do
la P.R.O. Mins. Accu. bdle. 764, No. 8. '" B.M. Add. R. 27161.
ltt P.R.O. Rentals and Surv. 74. '" P.R.O. Mins. Accu. bdle. 760, No. ?.
'" Ibid. bdle. 763, No. 9. "• Ibid. bdle. 764, No. 7.
61
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
not show that the arable land was turned into pasture, but the consolidation
of tenements into a few hands enabled the free tenants to inclose with but
little opposition. Three rentals at Haversham afford an illustration of what
was probably taking place all over the county. In 1305—6 there were fifty-
two tenants of all kinds ; in 1458—9 several men were holding two tenements
each, and, in consequence, the number of tenants had fallen to thirty-five.
Lastly, in 1497—8, there were only fourteen tenants in the rental ; of these
three held one messuage and half a virgate of land each, and one had only a
cottage, so that the remaining ten tenants must each have acquired a con-
siderable amount of land. At Fawley the number of tenants also decreased
during the same period, and at Cippenham in 1407-8 two virgates of land
had been definitely inclosed in the park, and therefore the rents were no
longer received by the bailiff.
Towards the end of the fifteenth century, however, the inclosers turned
arable land into pasture, pulled down houses, and turned away the tenants
and labourers for whom there was no longer any work. In 1490 an Act
was passed entitled an ' Act for keeping up of houses of husbondry,' but it
failed owing to the machinery for carrying it into effect being placed entirely
in the hands of those most interested in the retention of inclosures. Another
Act ' against the pulling down of towns ' was passed in 1515, which provided
a more adequate method of dealing with inclosures ; and was followed by
the appointment of a commission to inquire into the number and effect of
those already in existence. The returns for several counties are in existence,
amongst them being those for Buckinghamshire. The commissioners held
inquiries as to all inclosures made between the years 1485 and 1517, and the
terms of their commission especially were confined to inclosures for sheep
farming. The returns are made in very various forms, so that it is difficult
to ascertain whether in all the instances inclosure was followed by the con-
version of the arable land into pasture. Nearly 9,000 acres are included in
the Buckinghamshire returns, and in 81*5 per cent, of these it was definitely
stated that this conversion had taken place. With regard to the remainder
it seems probable that the omission was due to accident in the drawing up
of the evidence, particularly if the scale of inclosures in different hundreds is
considered. In the hundred of Ashendon 2,979 acres had been inclosed,
and in Newport and Cottesloe Hundreds over 1,800 and 1,100 acres respec-
tively, in all three districts the land being suitable for sheep farming. There
are practically no returns for the hundred of Desborough (48 acres in all),
but in Burnham 490 acres had been inclosed. There was, however, but
little land fit for pasture in these two hundreds, but good land for arable
farming, so that the incentive to inclosure for pasture would not be great.
A few years later Leland, passing through Burnham Hundred from Amer-
sham to Uxbridge, noted the ' goodly enclosed groundes ' that lay on each
side of his road, but of the inclosures returned in 1517 his way only passed
through Chalfont St. Peter. On entering Stoke Hundred, Denham again
was the only place along the road at which there were inclosures in 1517,
to the extent of 84 acres. Thus it is probable that the returns were made
only when inclosure was followed by the conversion of arable land into
pasture, though the land mentioned by Leland might of course have been
inclosed before 1485, or in the interval between 1517 and his journey.
62
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
The inclosures in Aylesbury Hundred are curiously small in extent, since
it lay in the centre of the Vale, and in the adjoining hundreds of Ashendon
and Cottesloe inclosures for pasture had taken place extensively. The
movement was at its height between the years 1491 and 1500, slackening in
the succeeding years covered by the reports. This was possibly due to the
fact that Buckinghamshire wool was of an inferior quality, and the price was
considerably lower than in Oxfordshire or Berkshire. Thus Buckingham-
shire farmers may have proved that sheep farming was not so profitable as
they had expected.
In the majority of the returns the amount of damage is estimated by
the number of houses destroyed and of ploughs thrown out of use. The
tenants were evicted with no compensation for the loss of their houses and
lands, and were reduced to extreme poverty. Much less labour was needed
on the pasture farms, and there was nowhere for the evicted tenants nor for
the labourers to go for employment, for inclosure was as frequent in the
neighbouring counties. Still, it must be remembered that the total inclosures
recorded formed less than two per cent, of the arable land under cultivation
in the counties making the returns, and that in the southern part of
Buckinghamshire but few evictions probably took place. Further north,
however, there must have been a great deal of distress ; the most serious
instances of wholesale evictions were at ' Birdston,' ' Dodershill," ' Littlecot,'
* Flete Marston,' and ' Hogshaw with the hamlet of Fulbrook,' all in the
hundreds of Cottesloe or Ashendon. At Birdstane a freeholder inclosed
400 acres of land and converted them to pasture ; four houses were pulled
down and sixty people turned out of their houses and lands, which had been
cultivated with eight ploughs, and ' the said town, hamlet and manor of
Byrdeston was now totally and wholly used and had for the pasture of sheep.'
At Doddershall 24 messuages and 24 virgates of land, each containing 40 acres,
had supported 120 persons with sixteen ploughs, but they had been turned
into pasture and the inhabitants had gone away in extreme poverty. At
Littlecote 84 persons had lost their occupations and land and had left the place,
* for the whole hamlet of Littlecot was devastated and destroyed.'
The lord of the manor, two freeholders, and a firmer had jointly inclosed
140 acres of arable land at Fleet Marston, evicting fifty persons, and only
one messuage on the demesne, with five cottages for as many shepherds, had
been left standing. A full account is given of the evictions at Hogshaw and
its hamlet of Fulbrook, which contained together 1 1 messuages and 390 acres
of arable land. From time immemorial these acres had been sown with grain,
and six ploughs had been employed on them, but the tenements were held at
firm by Ralph Lane and Roger Gifford from the prior of the Hospitallers in
England and of the abbot of Eynsham. The prior held the manor of
Hogshaw, where there were eight tenements ; Ralph Lane was in actual
occupation of the chief messuage of the manor and another smaller tenement.
The abbot held three tenements in Fulbrook, where Roger Gifford was also a
freeholder, ' seised in demesne of his fee.' The two firmors inclosed the
whole of Hogshaw and Fulbrook with a ditch, and ' kept and do now keep
in severally the arable lands and converted them to pasture and the pasturage
of animals.' Not only was the arable land thus inclosed and converted, but
the 569 acres of meadow and pasture were apparently also surrounded by the
63
\
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
ditch. In these five instances whole villages were swept away, so that the
tenants, their families and labourers, must have entirely lost their means of
livelihood, and but little help could have come from the neighbouring villages,
which had suffered only in a less degree. Everywhere the evicted tenants
must have joined the bands of vagrants wandering over the country, that were
becoming an increasing difficulty and a problem to the government.
With regard to the status of the inclosers, one fact is very striking in all
parts of the county. The ecclesiastical inclosers, whether lords of manors,
freeholders, or firmors, were responsible for an exceptionally small proportion
of the whole. The abbot of Notley inclosed 60 acres at Ashendon ; the
prior of Ravenstone, 48 acres at Ravenstone; the prior of Brad well, 300 acres in
Bradwell and Wolverton ; the abbot of Missenden, 80 acres at Great Missen-
den ; the prior of Snelshall, 20 acres at Mursley ; the abbot of Biddlesden,
40 acres at Thornborough ; the abbess of Elstow, 20 acres at Moulsoe ;
the abbot of Osney, 27 acres at Upton and 90 acres at Steeple Claydon ; and
the prebendary of Buckingham, 30 acres at Gawcott. The total amount of
land inclosed by ecclesiastics was only 715 acres, but it can to a great extent
be explained by the poverty and insignificance of most of the monasteries in
the county. Elsewhere it was the abbots of great monasteries who led the
inclosing movements, but when the ecclesiastical land was scattered in small
pieces of freehold in different manors, inclosure on a large scale was im-
possible. The lords of manors were responsible for the inclosures on their
lands held by firmors or copyholders, and therefore, if these are added, the
total inclosed by ecclesiastics is considerably raised, since the big inclosure at
Hogshaw was carried out on ecclesiastical land. Only one instance of
inclosure by a copyholder occurs throughout the county, and, curiously, it is
the only case in which the evidence was false. John Godewyn held i mes-
suage and 161 acres of land by copy of court roll of the prior of St. Frides-
wide's, Oxford, and 10 acres of freehold, both at Over Winchendon, and was
returned as having inclosed them for pasture. When his case was brought
on for trial it appeared that he had not inclosed the land at all, but had only
engrossed the two tenements. By far the greatest proportion of land was
inclosed by laymen of different kinds ; frequently it was done by the lords of
the manors themselves, who at this time seem still in many cases to have
farmed the demesne lands themselves ; twenty firmors, some of whom held
the site of the manor, or the chief messuage of the manor, form another large
class of inclosers, but ordinary freeholders formed the great majority.
At Castle Thorpe the remarkable instance occurs of a large inclosure
being made on a manor in the hands of the king, and by order of a royal
official, in spite of the statutes passed by Parliament. The bailiff had
inclosed 100 acres by order of the bishop of Carlisle, supervisor of the
lands of King Henry VII, and had evicted eighty-eight inhabitants.
The effect of his inclosure was to render the common cultivation of other
tenements in the manor impossible, and the tenants had therefore to give
up their lands.
The value of the land when inclosed was generally given in the return,
the average being 11*62^. per acre; the value on the large inclosures of
100 acres or more was considerably higher than that on the smaller inclosures,
the two averages being lyizef. and f)'%$d. respectively.
64
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
The inclosers had been allowed by the Acts of 1516 and 1517 to pull
down their inclosures within six months and to repair the houses on their
lands, and in the actions taken on the evidence of this commission much of
the land had been thrown open. The effect of the commission does not seem
to have been permanent. Much discontent was aroused in the country, and
the feeble effort at repression made in 1 549 by the issue of a * proclamation
for the laieng open of enclosures ' was of no avail.
The discontent finally burst forth in Ket's rebellion, and though most
serious in Norfolk, risings took place in other parts of the country. The
rebels hoped that the government would support them, believing that the
proclamation pledged it more or less to assist any movement against in-
closures. Holinshead describes the causes of the rebellion in the south of
England and the means that were taken to suppress it with a good deal of
detail in the following words : —
For where as there were few that obetad the commandment, the unadvised people presum-
ing upon their proclamation, thinking that they should be borne out by them that had set
it forth rashlic without order tooke upon themselves to redresse the matter, chose to them
capteins and leaders, brake open enclosures, cast doun ditches, killed up the deare, which
they found in parkes, spoiled and made havock, after the manner of an open rebellion . . .
First they began to plaie these parts in Sommcrsetshire, Buckinghamshire, Northampton-
shire, Kent, Essex, and Lincolnshire.
The rebellion in the west was put down with severity by Sir William Her-
bert, many of the rebels being slain and, quoting further from the Chronicle:
About the same time that this rebellion . . . began in the west, the like disordered buries
were attempted in Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire, but they were speedilie appeased by
the Lord Greie of Wilton, who comming downe that waie to joine with the lord privie
seale, chased the rebels to their houses, of whome two hundred were taken and a dozzen of
the ringleaders to him delivered, where of certaine afterwards were executed.
Ket's rebellion, followed shortly after the dissolution of the monasteries and
the renewed outcry against inclosures, has been attributed to the disappear-
ance of the old ecclesiastical lords of the manor. The new occupants of
these lands in Buckinghamshire most probably were more ready to inclose
than the religious houses had been, and whatever charity had been dispensed
to the evicted tenants was probably not continued by the new tenants in
chief or the firmors of the crown. They represented a new class of men in
the county, the lands often being held by merchants or lawyers ; amongst
the latter class, Sir John Baldwyn, the Lord Chief Justice, who was the
lord of the manor of Aylesbury, was a prominent example. Not only did
the monastic lands come to the crown in the sixteenth century, but each
of the numerous rebellions and plots brought the forfeited lands of traitors,
and whether the fee-simple was granted away or whether they were held
by indenture or letters patent, the new owner helped to swell the class
of country gentlemen who gathered all local power into their own hands.
Their influence in the county was but little connected with the manor,
which was no longer the centre of local government. The views of
frankpledge held in the king's manors show the small importance of mano-
rial justice. The constables or tithing men merely paid their fine due from
their township and occasionally made a presentment about the highways,
but all effective administration had passed to the justices of the peace. Not
2 65 9
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
only had the importance of the manor in the hands of the new lords or the
king's bailiff entirely disappeared, but even in the numerous places where a
manor had been in the same family for successive generations it had ceased
in the same way to be the unit of local life. Its place had been taken by
the parish. Within the parish the churchwardens, and later the overseers of
the poor, were the responsible officials, while constables and petty constables
of the townships made their presentments at the quarter and petty sessions
rather than at the court-leet of the manor. The justices of the peace trace
their origin to a proclamation of 1195, appointing knights to receive the
oaths from all men over fifteen years of age for the maintenance of the
peace. Gradually as the sheriff's power was undermined and the hundred
and shire courts in consequence lost their importance, the justices of the
peace sitting in quarter sessions formed the chief court for criminal justice
below the jurisdiction of the judges of the assize and became the chief ad-
ministrative and executive body in the shire. There was practically no
department in local affairs which did not come under their supervision in
the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The control of the police system, the
relief of the poor, and punishment of vagrants, licensing, the repair of the
highways, formed perhaps the chief duties of the justices. In I 562,149 in a
letter to Sir William Cecil, William Tyldsley, a justice of the peace in one
of the Chiltern Hundreds, describes very fully the local condition of Bucking-
hamshire. The Privy Council had issued letters to the magistrates of various
counties, ordering them to inquire into the administration of certain statutes.
Tyldsley writes in a most desponding spirit : —
There came also with them an ernest letter from the Cownsell which I do perceive,
hath caused in some shyres, a littell to be done, and in some shyres nothing at all. Yea
and as farre as I can perceyve they that had begone to do pretelye well, begyn now to wax
so cold that as me thynks, they be rather sor for that they have so well begonne than mynded
to continue.
In a postscript he adds : —
And yet me thynk I have forgotten one thing which I ought to tell you, which ys that in
all the hyther part of Berkshyr, they have done nothing at all, and hyt doith not onelye
hynder thys littill beginning that is here in Buckinghamshyre being so nere joyning
together, but also others that do border upon them.
For the inaction of many of the justices he finds excuses however ; they had
been away or at court, while with regard to Middlesex he adds : —
I do think they had no letters or else if they had, then surelye I think, that coming unto
Sir Roger Chomeley, they be utterlye forgotten in the bag of his cote and so nothing done
ther, for sureley he and Mr. Chydley can better skyll of the affayres of the cite then of
the country.
The writer had obviously the good government of his county very much
at heart, and the same may be said of all the justices for the next two cen-
turies. A great deal of time and trouble was expended by them on local
affairs, and the most celebrated men of the county sat on the commission of
the peace. In the further details of his letter Tyldsley gave a description
of the state of the county, and it was such as might be expected after the
long civil wars and weak government of the fifteenth century, followed by
the agrarian discontent and religious difficulties under the Tudors. The
"• S.P. Dom. Eliz. vol. 19, No. 43.
66
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
rich men were lawless and oppressive, the poor were suffering great distress,
and in many cases were disorderly and discontented. The ale-houses were
very numerous, being ' the stake and staye of all false theves and vagabondes.'
Wine licences were also the source of trouble, and no remedy was possible,
since the wine sellers were * my lord's servants or my master's servants, yea
or have such kynd of licenses and lycens out of lycens to them and their
deputies and assignesse.'
The power of the local magnates and their lawlessness had not been
successfully repressed, for since the keeping of retainers was only an offence
committed by great men, therefore it was ' of so much danger to be medelled
with at all, that hyt may at no hand be touched.' Again in the question of
tillage or inclosures 'hyt is playne sacraleage to medill whith those matters, for
they be all gintilmen of the richer sortt of men, that be offenders there in.'
The inclosure of land by the smaller freeholders had apparently been suc-
cessfully dealt with in 1517, since in the Domesday of Inclosures they had
been answerable for a considerable portion of the total amount inclosed, but
the commission had been powerless to deal with the greater offenders.
Vagabonds were numerous, and the repressive statutes might well have
been better obeyed ; the prevalence of robberies was attributed to the care-
lessness in keeping watch and ward and to possible connivance. ' Theves,'
Tyldsley writes, ' will be theves for they lak no frends and for watches be
kept indifferently well.' There arc no further letters with such a full
description of the state of the county, but in answer to the orders of the council,
the justices returned certificates dealing with special matters, such as the rate
of wages, the price of corn, poor relief, apprenticing, and the granting of
licences, giving all the information obtainable with regard to their adminis-
tration, until the records of quarter sessions begin, in the second half of the
seventeenth century.
From the fifteenth century the justices of the peace were empowered
to fix the scale of wages in their counties, giving a maximum wage, beyond
which no employer might go except under pain of a severe penalty. It is
generally supposed that these scales of wages were inoperative, and until
Elizabeth's reign, when the statute of 4 Henry V was re-enacted, the magis-
trates probably neglected to use their authority in the matter. Recognized
scales of wages are given in several Acts of Parliament, and the rates can be
compared with various entries of wages to be found in other sources at the
beginning of the sixteenth century. The maximum wage was continually
exceeded, and indeed the entries are rare when so low a rate as that fixed by
statute was paid.
It is difficult to obtain information concerning agricultural labour, but
the wages of carpenters, tilers, masons, &c., and their labourers are numerous.
By the Act of 6 Hen. VIII, cap. 3, master masons were allowed jd. a day ;
free masons, carpenters, plumbers, and men employed in similar trades had
6d. ; ordinary labourers ^d. ; but if food was received from the employer id.
less was given in money during the summer and id. less in winter. At
Wing"0 in 1537 and in the following years the wages correspond with these
rates — a mason had yd. and an ordinary labourer with his food 2d. Again, at
Burnham U1 a painter and his man together received is. 2d. and a carpenter
"• Wing, Churchwardens' Accts. UI Burnham, ibid. ; W. J. Burgess, ReeorJt of Bucks. T, 117-19.
67
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
8d., both just over the statutory rate ; labourers had $d. and 4^., and in one
case only ^d. On the other hand instances appear of a tiler receiving is. a
day and a carpenter 1 id., showing that in some cases the rate was exceeded
by a considerable amount. In the latter part of the century this became the
regular custom, and the wages actually paid to workmen were often double
the amount fixed in 1562 by the justices of the peace. The scale had risen
in all trades by zd. or id., and the allowance for food had also been increased
to 3</. At Eton IM the tendency was to pay the more skilled men wages above
the scale, and at WingU2a in 1573 a tiler got is. %d. a day or more than
double the rate fixed eleven years before.163 Similar instances continually appear;
hence the fixed scale of wages in 1562 may be assumed to represent not the
maximum but the minimum rate paid in the county to artisans and the usual
rate of wages paid to common labourers. It was drawn up in great detail,
showing many gradations, especially in agricultural labour, as well as
variations according to the time of year.
The rate of day's wages during time of harvest : —
Mower Sd. Mowers by the acre : — Oats j.d.
Man-reaper "jd. „ „ gross 8d.
Woman-reaper .... 6d. „ „ barley $d.
Common labourer . . . jd. „ „ wheat | , ,
Women rakers and cockers,&c. $d. „ „ rye J
From harvest to All Hallowstide : — Labourers T,d.
From All Hallowstide to Easter : — Labourers $d.
From Easter to harvest : — Labourers 6d.
ARTIFICERS
From Easter to From Michaelmas
Michaelmas to Easter
Master carpenters and sawyers . gd. "jd.
Other men jd. 6d.
Bricklayers, tilers, thatchers . . 8d. 6d.
Other men 6d. $d.
Rates of wages for servants at husbandry, &c. : —
1. No bailiff of husbandry shall take above 401. by the year and for his livery 6s. Sd.
2. No chief or head servant of husbandry shall take above 335. 6d. by the year and for
his livery 6s. 8d.
3. No common man servant at husbandry above 265. 8d. by the year and for his
livery 5*.
4. No man servant under sixteen, to take any wages but only sufficient clothes, meat,
drink, and other necessaries.
5. No unmarried woman servant above 2Os. by the year and for her livery 5*.
6. If under eighteen, unmarried, no wages but only meat, drink, clothes, and other
necessaries as shall be agreed or thought good by her master or mistress.
The condition of the labourer and artisan with the wages he received at
this time must have been considerably worse than in the fourteenth or
fifteenth centuries, owing to the rise in prices having been far greater than
the rise in the rate of wages. A carpenter during the latter part of the
fourteenth century received ^d. a day and in the fifteenth century from 6d.
upwards, but the average price of wheat at the two periods was 51. 6f</.m a
151 Eton Accts. Bks. 158a Wing, Churchwardens' Accts. 1M S.P. Dom. Eliz. vol. 19, No. 43.
1M Average taken from entries in Mins. Accts. for reigns of Edward III and Richard II.
68
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
quarter, 51. 5'2*/.m a quarter respectively. In the sixteenth century the prices
are unfortunately given by the justices for 1586-7,"' in a time of scarcity,
when wheat averaged $s. rid', a bushel, or more than eight times its value in
the fifteenth century, but at Whaddon in 1584 wheat was 19^. 4*/.ma quarter
in an ordinary year. Hence wheat had risen to nearly four times the value,
but wages, at the highest, to twice the rate in the preceding century.
Barley, which was used for bread in times of dearth, showed the same rise,
and the average prices ran from 4*. 57^. U7a and 3*. 4'53</.us a quarter in the
fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, but in the sixteenth century it was worth
over ioj.U8 a quarter, and in 1586— 7"' reached an average value of 22s. 8d. a
quarter.
It is interesting to note that this rise did not take place early in the six-
teenth century, for at Wing U8 between 1531 and 1539 barley varied from
3-r. nd, to 5-f. a quarter.
The price of wheat was so high that barley largely replaced it in
common use, and early in the seventeenth century the justices reported that
barley was dear, since it was ' the common feed of the poore."*
The restrictions on the freedom of all workmen under the Tudors are
important in their bearing on their prosperity, since they must have placed
them at a great disadvantage in endeavouring to obtain better wages. A
workman could not travel about the country without a passport, which he
was only certain of receiving when he had already obtained work elsewhere.160
The object of these restrictions was to ensure a steady supply of agricultural
labour and prevent men emigrating in great numbers to places where some
trade was especially flourishing. The fluctuations in the larger trades made
this to some extent a reasonable precaution. In I5621" there had been
appointed by the justices in every town in the three Chiltern Hundreds a
governor of labourers, and probably the same course had been followed else-
where. His duties were to present masters who gave too high a rate of
wages, and to control the comings and goings of all labourers. Without his
consent a man might not leave his town to work elsewhere, nor could any-
one apprentice his son to a trade unless he owned a freehold of 2OJ. value
a year, but the governor was to insist on the boy becoming a servant in
husbandry. When there was a scarcity of labour in harvest time the governor
was to apportion the men to different masters without partiality, and to compel
all journeymen and apprentices, if it was necessary, to work in harvest time
at the ordinary rate of wages. Again, no labourers might move from one
house to another or leave the hundred without giving a good reason to the
nearest justice and obtaining his leave.
Restrictions were also placed on the clothes of the agricultural labourers
and servants. The cloth worn by them was to be of * mean and low parts,'
"* Average only obtained from two manors, but the price of corn does not seem to have varied greatly in
different parts of the county.
* S.P. Dom. Eliz. vol. 199, No. 43.
"' Thorold Rogers, Hist, of A grit, and Prices, vol. ti.
1Ma Average taken from entries in Mins. Accts. for reigns of Edward III and Richard II.
"• Wing, Churchwardens' Accts. ; Thorold Rogers, op. cit.
'* S.P. Dom. Jas. I, vol. 140, No. 19. The rise in prices was due partly to the influx of silver into
Europe after the discovery of the Mexican silver mines, and partly to the debasement of the coinage by
Henry VIII and Edward VI.
164 This restriction was first made in a statute of 1388. " S.P. Dom. Eliz. vol. 9, No. 43.
69
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
and it was not to ' be jagged or cut,' nor was a ruffled shirt to be worn. The
same orders also applied to journeymen and apprentices, and tailors who
supplied any of the prohibited finery were mulcted 6oj. for each offence.
For the first half of the seventeenth century there is no scale of wages
given by the justices, but from other sources of information it appears that
a slight rise took place. At Wing m there was a parish mole-catcher who
was paid by the year ; he had formerly received 26s. 8d. from the church-
wardens, the maximum wage for a common servant in husbandry in 1562.
It was arranged, however, that the parish was in future to pay him only half
that sum, for work in Wing field and Wing mead, but that owners of
inclosed land were to pay him themselves for work that he did for them. In
another case, an artisan who worked in the church and must have been either
a carpenter or mason received is. 2d. a day. At Eton163 artisans' labourers
received lod. or is. a day. At Horton,16* where paper-mills had been estab-
lished, the workmen and labourers were said to be paid double the rate of
wages of ordinary day-labourers. When the mills were stopped during a
time of plague in 1636, the manufacturer petitioned for relief, and amongst
other items there appeared 45^. a week for his man and four apprentices ; if
they all were paid at the same rate, they would each have received is. 6d. a
day, considerably above the rate of artisans' labour elsewhere, but in all pro-
bability the apprentices would have had less than a man who appears to have
been the head man at the paper-mill. Unfortunately there is no mention of
the number of the other labourers for whom £5 a week was required. There
were, however, twelve paper-mills in Buckinghamshire in which a consider-
able number of men must have been employed at a high rate of wages. At
this time, however, the market price of corn was extremely high, and at
several epochs scarcity prices prevailed throughout the county, in spite of the
interference of the justices ; at Eton185 in 1600, at the close of a period of
dearth, wheat was42J. 8d. a quarter, but during the next years it had dropped
to 3U. 4*/. and 26s. 8d., the lowest price for several years. It was over 40^.
a quarter in 1607, and in 1622 the justices166 of the peace in the three
hundreds of Aylesbury reported that it had been as high as 6oj. a quarter.
Still it was the custom, in some parts of the county at least, to sell to the
poor at a lower rate, at the corn-masters' own houses, so that the market price
given by the justices does not show the real price paid by the labourers them-
selves. An adequate supply of corn in this long period of scarcity cannot
have been within their means, since charitably inclined people bought rye,
which was not grown in Buckinghamshire, and sold it at less than cost price
to the poor. Less than ten years later the justices were again forced to
regulate the sale of corn in the markets, since in Desborough Hundred w
wheat had reached the price of jzs. a quarter, while barley was dearest in
Cottesloe and Buckingham 167 Hundreds at 48^. a quarter.
Until 1687 188 none of the scales of wages drawn up at quarter sessions
has been preserved, but in that year the scale shows that the necessity of a
rise had been recognized by the magistrates, though with but little approach
163 Wing, Churchwardens' Accts. 163 Eton Acct. Bks.
164 S.P. Dom. Chas. I, vol. 344, No. 40. 165 Eton Acct. Bks.
16; S.P. Dom. Jas. I, vol. 140, No. 19. 16? Ibid. vol. 142, No. 44.
168 Quart. Sess. Rec. 1687.
70
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
to the actual wages which masters were content to pay for labour. The laws
against masters who gave more than the legal wage were, however, not en-
forced; there are no presentments of such offences, and the bench "' of magis-
trates even ordered a master to pay his servant wages that were due to her
at the rate of 32*. for the half year, although this exceeded by js. the
maximum amount for the most highly paid woman-servants.
The scale shows, however, that agricultural wages were lower in the
Vale than in the Chilterns in the case of servants hired by the year. The
chief bailiff in husbandry had £6 in the Chilterns, but only £5 in the Vale ;
for ordinary farm servants this difference does not appear, all having £4, but
the boys both under and over sixteen received less in the Vale. The pay-
ment of boys from twelve years old was a new development in the seven-
teenth century, since in 1 562 no servant under sixteen years of age was allowed
to take any wages in money, but only his clothes and board. Another
feature in this scale of wages is the varying amount allowed instead of meat
and drink ; for a mower or reaper, the allowance was 8</. a day, but for men
hay-makers only $d.\ ordinary labourers out of harvest-time received ^d. ;
some women again had ^d. and others not more than ^d. The same varia-
tions occur amongst the artisans, the food allowance varying from ^d. for the
yelmers to SJ. for the more skilled artisans in summer, but the latter in winter
only received t^d. in lieu of food.
It is perhaps interesting to enumerate the trades which appeared in the
scale in order to show the commonest occupations in the county.
Free masons were the most highly paid artisans, then followed rough
masons, carpenters, plough-wrights, bricklayers, tilers and plasterers, gardeners,
and finally thatchers, servants of thatchers, yelmers, tailors, sawyers, and spinners.
The wages were fixed evidently with a view to regulating the payments for
agricultural labour and those trades which were practised in country districts.
The men in the paper mills, weavers and others employed in the clothing
trade, for instance, did not come under the magistrates' restrictions. As a
matter of fact the regular rate for ordinary labour seems already to have been
is. m a day with but little variation, though the legal amount was 8</. at
most ; but in the more skilled work the difference as usual was even greater.
Instead of is. zd. a bricklayer was entered as receiving 2J., a carpenter
is. 6d., and a plumber, whose trade did not appear in the scale of wages, had
2s. bd. a day."1
Undoubtedly the question of the greatest historical importance dealt
with by the justices of the peace was the administration of poor relief,
since the central government, as it gradually assumed responsibility in the
matter, acted almost entirely through the local magistrates of the county and
borough. In mediaeval times the relief of poverty was left entirely to private
charity. The monasteries gave largely and indiscriminately to all who came
to their doors ; the nobles kept open tables, while, for the old, almshouses and
hospitals were numerous all over the country. Large towns sometimes had
organized the charitable benefactions of their citizens by the action of the
municipality, but the government took no real responsibility for the relief
of the poor until the sixteenth century.
'* Quart. Scss. Rec. uo n. a day was paid at Ayletbury, Eton, and Wing.
171 Wing, Churchwardens' Acct».
7'
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
The first interference with the condition of the labourers was entirely in
the interests of the employers, to keep down wages and secure a larger
supply of labour, but nevertheless it was very closely connected with the
later poor laws. The Statute of Labourers restrained the liberty of the giver,
who was forbidden to give alms to able-bodied beggars, in order that they
might be forced to work for their living. In 1388 an Act of Parliament
admitted the right of those who could not work to relief, but restrained the
movements of all beggars and labourers. Servants who wished to leave their
hundred, either for change of work or for a pilgrimage, could only do so
when they had obtained a letter duly signed by the head man of the hundred.
Anyone, whether beggar or labourer, found wandering without such a letter
was to be put in the stocks and kept there until a surety was found for his
return. Even impotent beggars might not wander about the country, but
must obtain support in their own neighbourhood. At the same time various
Acts were passed for controlling religious endowments, which were continu-
ally diverted from their original objects.171
In Henry VII's reign there were further enactments against beggars
and vagabonds, with less severe punishments, but probably the offenders were
not very numerous. The views of frankpledge give little evidence that
the vagrancy question caused much difficulty, but at Newport Pagnel,178 the
case of a vagrant who was punished according to the statute was interesting
from the rarity of such a presentment at a court-leet in the next reign.
In the sixteenth century a great change came over the attitude of the
government. The question was no longer one of forcing men to work for
lower wages, but of providing work for the unemployed and food for them
at a reasonable price. This change was due to the great increase of vagrancy
resulting from various causes, but in Buckinghamshire undoubtedly from the
inclosure of arable land and its conversion to pasture and the consequent loss
by the evicted tenants of both houses and work.
How far the monasteries before the Dissolution had effectually relieved
the distress it seems impossible to estimate, but they were for the
most part very small and poor.174 Few but Notley Abbey and perhaps
Missenden could have given sufficient alms to relieve on any large scale, so
that probably the unemployed labourers had from the first swelled the large
body of vagrants. The rise in prices, due to the debasement of the coinage
in the reigns of Henry VIII and Edward VI and to the influx of silver to
the country, affected food before wages, and therefore the condition of men
who were in employment was comparatively much worse than had been
the case.
The crisis in the cloth trade must have affected Buckinghamshire less
than the neighbouring counties, though in some places a considerable
number of men were engaged in the trade, particularly at Wycombe.
In the municipal records of the town in the reign of Henry VIII there is an
order for weavers and fullers very much more stringent than the only earlier
order175 extant, by which weavers were to be quit of all dues to the Gild.
of Merchants excepting stallage in the market. The later order 176 laid
m e.g. Hospitals at Wjrcombe and New-port Pagnel. "* P.R.O. Ct. R. ptfo. 153, No. I.
174 Cf. value of different monasteries at the time of the Dissolution ; Dugdale, Mm.
m Municipal Records of Chepping Wycombe. I7t Ibid. temp. Hen. VIII.
72
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
various restrictions on tradesmen in the town. No person weaving or
fulling was to occupy more than one such trade ; he must have been either
apprenticed in the borough, or else brought up in his youth with craftsmen of
the same occupation ; no c occupyers of the crafts of wevyng, fullyng, or
clothyng ' were to * put forth any of their work to dy or full otherwise than
to craftsmen of the same boro' occupying that trade.' This was the earliest of
many orders to craftsmen of all kinds, limiting their freedom in their trades,
and though undated was probably due to the crisis in the wool trade brought
about by Wolsey's foreign policy in 1527- 8,m since its object was to protect
the established weavers and fullers in the borough from the competition
of new comers driven to the town by the loss of work elsewhere.
The distress arising from the various causes enumerated led to the
passing of a series of statutes terminating in the Poor Laws of 1597 and
1 60 1, and simultaneously the Privy Council, by means of orders to the
magistrates of various counties and towns, attempted to alter and amend the
economic condition of the country.
Between 1514 and 1569 there are many of the Council's proclamations
to be found amongst the state papers of the time. The commission on
inclosures has already been dealt with in its relation to Buckinghamshire,
but otherwise there are no returns of the justices of the peace in answer to
the letters of the Council, until the letter written by William Tyldsley, in
I562,178 apparently in answer to the instructions of 1561."*
The statutes dealt mainly with vagrancy, and the compulsory apprentice-
ship of poor children, but important steps were taken for the collection of
funds in each parish. No.t until 1572, however, was any advance made
towards a compulsory poor rate.
In 1547 an Act was passed ordering cottages to be erected for the
impotent poor, and in 1551—2 alms were to be collected in every parish
by collectors nominated by the householders of each parish. There was
no compulsion, however, on the givers of the alms, but their generosity was
to be encouraged by the exhortations of the parsons and the bishop.
The poor box is mentioned in 1562 in Tyldsley's report, and those who
made default in coming to church were to be presented by the church-
wardens, the collectors of the poor-men's box, or two of the best men
in every parish, once a month to the grand jury. The fines arising from
these presentments were to go to the poor box, but evidently regular
collectors were not to be found in every parish at this time : at Wing 18° in
the churchwardens' accounts they do not appear until 1577. The only
entries before that year record payments to the poor of varying amounts
on All Souls' Day.
In 1572 the justices and mayors were empowered to assess the poor rate
and appoint overseers and collectors. Those who resisted the exhortations of
the bishop to contribute to the rate might be taken before two magistrates
and imprisoned, but there was still no distraint on non-payment.
The necessity for a compulsory poor rate arose in the first place owing
to the vagrancy laws,181 which had ordered, that after a vagrant had been
"' The town of Buckingham luffcred when the staple for wool was altered to Calaii and sought relief
by an Act of Parliament 1535; Browne Willis, H'ul. of Borough and HunJrtJ of Buckingham.
"* S.P. Dom. Eliz. vol. 19, No. 13. "» Sloane MS. 152, foL 16.
'" Churchwardens' Accu. «" ai Hen. VIII.
2 73 10
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
whipped in the market town nearest to the place, where he was arrested, he
was to be sent back to his place of birth, or to the place where he had last
dwelt three years, and there work for his own living. The Act of I536183
stated that no directions had previously been made for the provision of work
for the returned vagrant, and therefore ordered funds to be established with
this object. In 1562 the report showed that the vagrancy laws might have
been better observed, and that the number of ale-houses encouraged thieves
and vagants to a dangerous extent. Ten years later the justices for the three
hundreds of Aylesbury made a return 18S showing that they had dealt with
eleven vagrants and conveyed them towards the place where they had last
dwelt. A certificate of 1577"* may also bear on the question of vagrants,
for the justices had drawn up a complete list of all inns and ale-houses in the
county amounting to a total of 422.
Various Acts had provided for the return of vagrants to the place of
their birth, but it was not till 1575 186 that any particular orders were given
for setting them to work on their arrival. The new Act ordered a stock of
wool, flax, hemp, iron, or other materials to be provided in every city,
corporate town, or market town, when so ordered by the justices, so that the
unemployed poor might earn their own living and the young be taught to
work. Houses of correction were to be built in every county, but of these
the justices make no return in the sixteenth century.
Apart from statutory enactment, the Privy Council made direct efforts
to relieve special distress. The years 1572, 1586, and from 159410 1597
were periods of great scarcity of corn, and, owing to the small area from
which markets could be supplied, the failure of the harvest meant absolute
starvation to a great part of the population. The council interfered, prob-
ably to prevent the disorders always following on a great scarcity of corn,
and in I586186 the returns illustrate very fully the method of dealing with
the question.
The justices of the peace apportioned themselves into small groups
in the different hundreds, and each group was responsible for carrying out
the council's instructions in one particular division. In the three
hundreds of Cottesloe,187 the magistrates reported that they had chosen forty-
three persons, who were divided into three juries, to make the necessary
inquiries. The juries found that there was very little corn to spare in the
county, ' for as many as have a surplus, as many need corn,' but those who
had such a surplus were ordered to bring it to market by weekly portions.
The justices themselves had called before them all badgers, bakers, brewers,
ale-house keepers, and malt makers, and had dealt with them according to
the instructions, in order to prevent the badgers and corn-dealers from buying
corn to re-sell at an increased price, and the brewers, &c., from using the
barley, which would otherwise be made into bread.
They had also set up in market towns and other places overseers,
' honest, and discreet persons,' to see to the carrying out of these orders as
well as to the relief of the poor, and, lastly, they gave the current price of
corn. A joint certificate was drawn up for the hundreds of Buckingham
and Newport,188 where the same procedure had been followed, but it was
181 27 Hen. VIII. m S.P. Dom. Eliz. vol. 86, No. 27. 1M Ibid. vol. 115, No. 27.
84 1 8 Eliz. cap. 3. "• S.P. Dom. Eliz. vol. 199, No. 43. 187 Ibid. (i). lai Ibid. (v).
74
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
added that the markets were not so well supplied as formerly, owing to the
counties of Northampton and Oxford having ' mad restraynte that none
maie bring anie corne oute of theire Countie in to ours, which before
were greater reliefe to us, than anie parte of our owne Shyre.' The southern
parts of these hundreds at least, contained a greater proportion of pasture
land than arable, so that they would have largely depended on corn from
other counties. The prices quoted were slightly higher than in Cottesloe
Hundred.
In 1577 the justices 189 were ordered to interfere in the wool trade, and
they returned a certificate to the effect that they had bound the ' Broggers
and buyers of wooll' in £100 a piece, that neither they nor their heirs would
buy any kind of wool that had been grown within the county beyond what
they or their apprentices were able to use each in his own house. They
were further forbidden to buy any wool in order to sell it again wholesale,
but the justices found that even those who had had licence to buy granted
them, had obeyed the proclamation of the council.
The legislation for poor relief of the sixteenth century was brought to
its conclusion by the Acts of 1597 and 1601, the latter in all essential points
a re-enactment of the previous statute, with certain amendments.
These Acts formed the basis of poor-law administration until the close of
the eighteenth century, and not only were they important in this respect,
but they seem to have been far more efficiently carried out than earlier
enactments.
The main clauses provided that the relief of the poor should be in the
hands of the churchwardens and four overseers of the poor appointed yearly
by the justices of the peace.
Poor children were to be taught some employment or apprenticed ;
adults were to be employed and stock was to be provided for those who could
not find work.
The impotent, the blind, and the aged were to be relieved and hospitals
might be built on waste lands for their reception. With regard to the funds
necessary to carry out these instructions a rate was levied on ' every in-
habitant and occupyer of landes,' and on refusal to pay it might be
levied by distress. The assessment was made by the parochial officers with
the consent of two justices, but any appeal was to be made at quarter sessions.
A county rate was also established for the relief of prisoners and for the
support of almshouses, &c., administered by a treasurer of the county
appointed by the justices. All beggars and rogues were forbidden to wander
about the county, excepting those who begged from fellow parishioners, and
licensed soldiers and sailors passing to their place of settlement.
This statute was supplemented by an Act for the punishment of rogues,
vagrants, and sturdy beggars. All old statutes were repealed, and justices
were to establish houses of correction to which vagrants were to be sent after
having been whipped at the place of arrest.
The Acts seem to have been well carried out. In the accounts at
Wing190 after 1615 entries are continually made of money paid to travellers
with a passport and to ' poor men,' the occasion not always being specified,
though often the relief is given on account of losses by fire, shipwreck, or illness.
"* S.P. Dom. Eliz. vol. 115, No. 8. "° Churchwardens' Accts.
75
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
The council by its direct action attempted to enforce the law, mainly
by means of letters to the justices of the peace. These letters were no
longer confined to special times of distress, but deal continually in the
reigns of the first two Stuart kings with the ordinary administration of the
poor law.
In the year 1603 was a visitation of the plague, and at Wing the church-
wardens paid 3-r. for two books of prayer in the time of plague and for the
letters of the council.
No Buckinghamshire returns exist during the scarcity of 1608, but they
are full in 1622—3 and 1631, dealing not only with the provision of corn
but with the whole system of poor relief. It is remarkable that the differ-
ence between private charity and public relief is unnoticed, and the justices
report their own action in the market and the charity of private people as
similar efforts to deal with the difficulty. There is an extremely interesting
return for Desborough m Hundred in 1622, including the report of the
mayor of Wycombe. The same course of action to lower the price of corn
was pursued as in Elizabeth's reign, and in addition corn-masters served the
poor at their own houses upon credit, which they would not do in the
market, — and thus the poor obtained sufficient food. In various parishes
men had bought rye in London out of their own purses for the poor and sold
it at less than cost price. The poor, as far as possible, had been given
employment, but their poverty was ascribed to the condition of the clothing
and bone-lace trades, both of which were ' much decayed and do daylie
fayl.' In consequence there were no means to set the poor in work, although
help was afforded so far as the stocks and collections of every parish allowed.
In the town of Wycombe there were as many as a hundred people out of
work, and other towns suffered from the same cause, since lack of employment
was far more serious than the scarcity of corn, and the poor could only starve
or steal in spite of the fact that the monthly collections in many parishes had
been doubled. Assistant constables had been appointed to deal with vagrants,
their numbers being too numerous for the ordinary constables, and many ale-
house licences had been taken away. In 1631 there are returns for the
greater part of the county. In Desborough Hundred192 in this year there was
a shortage of corn, though Wycombe market was well supplied from
Oxfordshire, Berkshire, and Hampshire. It was the only market in the
hundred, and part of Ashendon Hundred198 must also have been dependent
on it, since there was no market at all according to the certificate, the land
being nearly all pasture and ' gentlemen's demaynes.' The market of
Buckingham also was well supplied from Oxfordshire, and hence, with the
suppression of maltsters and brewers, prices had abated.
In the borough m itself, the magistrates report that the poor did not
beg in their own parish and had no cause to beg elsewhere, since they were
all well relieved and given work, but the inhabitants grumbled at the heavy
weekly taxation more than the poor at the restrictions on begging. Vagrants
were few, because watch and ward were well kept, and the townspeople no
longer gave to strange poor when they might not do so to their own people ;
and further, a penalty had been imposed on those who relieved vagrants, in a
191 S.P. Dom. Jas. I, vol. 142, No. 44. 191 Ibid. Chas. I, vol. 191, No. 35 (iv).
193 Ibid. vol. 191, No. 35 (iii). 194 Ibid. vol. 197, No. 46.
., 76
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
by-law made at a court-leet. Vagrancy, however, was not a serious question,
since few vagrants came through that part of the country. Writing in July
the justices said that they had delayed apprenticing poor children, so that
they might work at harvest time for their parents, but in October thirty
children had been placed with masters, all living in the parish.
The reports from the hundreds of Cottesloe and Aylesbury show that
the administration was carried on in the same manner ; in the latter it was
again the custom to serve the poor with corn at the corn-master's house, and the
justices had insisted on a true weight of bread being sold in the market,
punishing bakers who sold false weight and appointing surveyors of weights
and measures in each town.
Whether the action of the justices, under the books of order issued by
the council, was successful is difficult to ascertain. The interference of the
council and the supervision of the judges of assize1" certainly produced great
activity amongst the justices themselves, but of the action of the overseers in
the parishes it is more difficult to form an estimate. The actual relief of the
impotent poor was entirely in their hands, as well as the provision of work
for the able-bodied. The town stock seems to have been kept up in the
various hundreds, but how the work was arranged does not appear. Probably
the labourers worked largely at their own homes, for at Wing there is no
mention of a workhouse. At Aylesbury, however, after the Civil War there
was a workhouse, where children were taught trades and the poor worked on
the town stock. No mention is made of its erection in the accounts, so that
presumably it was built in the first half of the century or still earlier. The
impotent were largely provided for in almshouses, many of which were built
in Buckinghamshire at this time.1**
The interference with the markets was attended with complete success,
though it was very unpopular at such a place as Wycombe, a large corn
market for the surrounding counties. A protest 1W was sent to the council by
the mayor, showing that the justices had perhaps defeated their own ends,
since both corn-dealers and farmers lost so heavily by the artificial low prices
that they would no longer set aside sacks for the poor as they had formerly
done. The justices, therefore, had themselves bought corn to sell to the poor
at less than the market prices.
This protest shows, however, that the prices were lowered by their
action, and that the interference was thought beneficial even by men who
were landowners themselves ; for John Hampden, Sir Fleetwood Dormer,
and Sir Robert Lovett were amongst the many landowners who were on the
commission of the peace at the time, and their action in the markets must
have been directly opposed to their own interests. No protests came from
the other towns, which were not likely to be affected so much as Wycombe.
After the Civil War the overseers' accounts1'8 for Aylesbury are preserved,
and show very fully the system of poor relief. Collections in the parish made
fortnightly amounted to from £3 to £4 in 1657. In the previous year
thirty-five persons were receiving relief in money, the amounts varying from
\od. to 6s. a fortnight, while the relief for the hamlet of Walton was entered
M Rcturni of the justices of the peace were at times addressed to the judges of assize.
"* e.g. the almshouse at Newport Pagnel was refounded by Anne of Denmark.
'" S.P. Dom. Chas. I, vol. 177, No. 50. ™ The accounts begin in 1656.
77
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
in a lump sum of 6s. for the widows there. The recipients were all either
widows or children, the latter having been boarded out, but as their age is
not given no estimate of the cost of their maintenance can be formed. Their
clothes were also provided ; in the same year the entry under this head
included ' 2 aprons, 2 queafes, a paire of bodies, making two smocks,' for
3-f. i od. Clothes were bought for other paupers as well, linen for the poor
being a frequent entry, as well as outfits for boys who were apprenticed —
£i os. 6d. was paid for the clothes of 'Sam Bankes boy' when he went to
London as an apprentice. The overseers also attended to the repair of the
almshouses, but these do not seem to have provided house room for those sup-
ported, nor were rents paid out of the poor rates until 1670, when Mr. Diggit
received $s. 6d. ' for old Howes quit rent in Walton.' How the house room
was provided before this date does not appear, but the widows may have lived
as inmates or lodgers in other houses or with their children. In one case a
daughter was given zs. for looking after her mother, but this seems an
exceptional case, and relations were probably required to do something
towards supporting old people and children where possible. For instance, a
man named Anthony Todd died in 1677, and his children were provided for
by the overseers. Their father appears to have been fairly well off, since
the sale of his effects includes four mares, three cows, two heifers, seventy-three
sheep and lambs, a little corn and a wagon. William Todd (his relationship
is not specified) was required to pay 2os. per annum toward the maintenance
of the children, who appeared in the accounts as ordinary parish children.
A certain number of those who received relief may have also been
earning some money by spinning, the only form of work provided by the
overseers at this time.
In 1658, 1,493 lb. of hemp were bought at %d. a lb.,and the poor were
paid for spinning at the rate of \d. a Ib. Some of the yarn was then sent to
weavers, who received £3 4-f. \d. for their work, and finally the cloth and
the rest of the yarn were sold to various people, resulting in a loss on the
whole transaction for the year of £9 ijs. zd. The next year the spinning of
the yarn cost the same amount, \zd. a Ib., and some was sold at cost price,
the result being a greater loss. The overseers finally gave up providing the
work for the poor themselves, and contracts were entered into with two men,
apparently hemp-dressers, who employed the poor, receiving in all £8 IQJ.
from the overseers. The transaction still brought a small loss to the parish,
but only 8s. 8</., so that the contracting system must have been found far
more advantageous than the direct employment of paupers by the overseers.
The custom of paying house rent increased very considerably towards
the end of the century, and repairs were also carried out at the ratepayers'
expense. The overseers rented cottages for the paupers who could
not live with their relations. The same system existed elsewhere, for
the churchwardens and overseers at Ilmer were ordered in i68o199 to place
another inhabitant ' in the house where Emma Bigge dwelt,' a new door and
chimney being added to the house. At Hughenden leave was obtained from
the justices to build a cottage to provide accommodation for the poor, and
the lord of the manor had been petitioned for a vacant place on the waste
ground as a site.
m Quart. Sess. Rec.
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
The scope of the relief given was gradually growing much wider, fore-
shadowing the practice of the eighteenth century. At Aylesbury payments
were made to men who were either ill themselves, or whose families
were ill. In 1671 there are several such entries, including payments to
Henry Pratt, the bone-setter, who received $s. for setting a shoulder or thigh.
Medical relief seems to have been given freely to the families of able-bodied
men, and indeed the above charges must have been beyond the means of an
ordinary labourer getting at most is. a day, but such assistance was also given
to men who could hardly have been in great need, such as the miller who had
3*. to take his child to the bone-setter.
Pest-houses in times of plague were also provided by the overseers, and
were carefully isolated and watched. At Aylesbury the greater part of the
expenses connected with the pest-house were the wages of day and night
watchmen, while the inmates seem to have been terribly neglected. Food
was provided, but the overseers were forced to pay compensation for the
sheep-racks and gates burnt at the pest-house to provide firewood. They
were not permanent institutions, but were set up whenever the necessity
arose, the last mention of one at Aylesbury being in 1781.
The theory also was gaining ground that if a man could not find work
he must be supported by the parish, in great contrast to the views advanced
by the inhabitants of Stoke Hundred100 in 1636—7, that when the paper-mills
were stopped the manufacturer must himself provide for his workmen, since
he had brought them to the mills. In 1679 two orders were made at the
Easter quarter sessions illustrating this change : at Whitchurch the relief to
Thomas Curtis was to cease, but the inhabitants were to keep him in work ;
at Ivinghoe there was a similar order to stop an allowance of 6J. a month to
Richard Fowler, provided that the parishioners maintain his children and
find him work. More severe orders were still issued. At West Wycombe a
man had been the recipient of 2s. 6d. a week, but it appeared to the court that
he was ' a man of very able body to work for his own livelyhood.'
An Act of Parliament was passed in 1691 in consequence of the growing
laxity of the overseers in giving relief, ordering that a register of the paupers801
in each parish should be kept, with the amounts they each received, and
should be produced once a year at a vestry meeting. No one else might
receive parish relief except by the authority of one justice of the peace or by
an order of the Bench at quarter sessions. This clause, far from effecting
the economy intended in the statute, was the main cause of many of the evils
which grew up in the eighteenth century, since the practice arose of any
magistrate ordering relief to an applicant without consultation with the parish
officers. The result was, naturally, a great deal of friction between the two
poor-law authorities, besides an increase in the rates.
The change in the attitude of the justices is shown clearly in the absence
of orders at quarter sessions restraining relief given by the overseers, which
had hitherto been frequent. Still, in the parishes themselves, attempts were
made to keep down the rates, which had risen steadily at the end of the
seventeenth century. At Aylesbury the total disbursements in the first
account were under £156, but in 1702 they had risen to £326 7s- IO^- In
*" S.P. Dom. Chat. I, vol. 34.4, No. 40.
*"' A lilt of pensioners for relief was kept at Ajlesbury as early as 1679 ; Quart. Seas. Rec. 1679.
79
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
that year an attempt to economize was made by abandoning the system of
paying rents for paupers' cottages, and the vestry decided that the almshouses,
which were in the course of rebuilding, should have lodging chambers built
over them, with chimneys in them, ' for receiving such poor into them to
dwell in as may discharge the said parish from payments of any rents after
the Michaelmas quarter following.'
In 1722 a further attempt was made to ensure greater economy by a
statute enacting that parishes might provide workhouses for the reception of
paupers, and that no one who refused to live in the house should receive
parochial relief. The building of workhouses followed quickly on this Act.
At Wing the repair of the workhouse becomes a frequent charge in the
accounts, and for some time the workhouse test seems to have been adopted
there as elsewhere. At Aylesbury it is possible that the almshouses had
taken the place of such a workhouse at this time, for the latter institution is
not mentioned till 1758, when it was resolved at a vestry meeting ' that under
no pretence whatever should the overseers pay or cause to be paid any sum
or sums of money for the relief of persons who refuse to come into the work-
house, and that after Michaelmas no rents will be paid or allowed.' How
long the workhouse with living-rooms had been in existence does not appear,
but the resolution shows that the old order of 1702 forbidding the payment
of rents had become obsolete.
The maintenance of the poor in the workhouse was carried out by
contracts, but the contractor lost to such an extent that it was decided to
pay him £95 over and above his contract by way of compensation. The
proceeding seems to have been exceedingly unbusiness-like and savours a
good deal of undue influence exercised by the contractor in the vestry. The
next year the overseers, apparently to get out of the difficulty, undertook
the management of the workhouse themselves.
Provision was made in various ways for the children in the workhouse ;
at one time twelve catechism books were bought ; at another payments for
schooling, only for boys, are entered at the rate of zd. a week for each boy.
The inmates of the workhouse were still provided with work, but
sewing and lace-making had taken the place of spinning. A considerable
number of silk lace-makers seem to have been regular employees at the
workhouse, since entries are made of payments of id. each to lace-makers
when they cut off; at another time they received 3^. to keep ' Caterin.'
The master or governor of the Aylesbury workhouse does not appear under
that name, but Isaac Wheeler, who in 1788 and the succeeding years
received a salary ' to look after the workhouse,' probably occupied some such
position. The question of the settlement of vagrants also involved a great
deal of expense. Appeals to quarter sessions were continual, and the object
of each parish was to prevent the settlement of anyone likely to become
chargeable on the poor rate. Since the Restoration the Settlement Acts
were made terribly severe, and the same tendency is shown in the orders of
quarter sessions. In 1680 any persons taking a tenement of small value in
any parish in the county, with the intent to become inhabitants, could be
removed to their last place of settlement, by the court, if they had been
warned to depart by the churchwardens and overseers. In fact if there was
the least future possibility of a newcomer becoming chargeable to the parish,.
80
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
he could be ordered to return to his last place of settlement. A few years
later the inhabitants of Princes Risborough appealed against a blacksmith of
Missenden attempting to settle within their parish. At Aylesbury £4 was
paid for apprenticing a boy named Joseph Rash for seven years, but half the
sum was held over as security that he would not be chargeable to the parish
for the next year.
Vagrants and beggars were a source of continual trouble, but these were
dealt with by the constables and not the overseers. In 1679 the poor of
Aylesbury *°* were forbidden to beg ; if they were found begging the con-
stables were ordered to take them to the house of correction, and they were
to be struck off the list of recipients of parish relief.
At Wendover an ale-house keeper lost his licence for allowing rogues
and vagabonds to lie in his barns and outhouses. Scotch pedlars and petty
chapmen, who wandered about the country in large numbers, were a
grievance, and orders were issued that they were to be publicly whipped
by the constables or tithing-men.
In 1688 at the Easter sessions constables were ordered to put the laws
against vagrants into effect, since their numbers had increased and they
formed a danger to the country-side, threatening women left alone in houses
in lonely parts when their husbands and servants were away at work.
Besides losses by theft, people were also in great fear of acts of incendiarism
on the part of vagrants.
Two years later orders were given to the petty constables as to the
necessity of keeping strict watch on strangers, and dealing with vagrants
according to the statutes. These orders showed that the house of correction
was becoming far more like a prison than had been the case formerly.
Ordinary vagrants without passes were of course to be whipped and sent to
their places of settlement. If this was not known, they were to be dis-
patched to the county gaol for work until they could be placed in service,
but ' incorrigible rogues and dangerous and not to be reformed ' were to be
taken before a justice of the peace and admitted to the house of correction.
There were houses of correction at Aylesbury, Wycombe, and Newport
Pagnel, and a fourth was provided at Buckingham in 1719, but was
abolished in less than twenty years. The governors203 received £30 a vear
paid from the county rate, and were supervised by the justices, for in the
Michaelmas sessions in 1684, a 'grand inquest view' was ordered to inquire
whether the governor at Wycombe performed his duty. This consisted of
seeing that the able-bodied labourers who refused to place themselves in
service worked in an orderly manner so long as they were confined in the
house of correction.
The removal of vagrants involved a great deal of expenditure, which fell
partly on each parish and partly on the county. The travellers who received
small payments at Wing throughout the seventeenth century must often have
been vagrants who were passing through the county to their place of settle-
ment. Early in the eighteenth century the justices complain of the extra-
ordinary charge for passing and conveying vagabonds and cripples. To the
constable of Little Brickhill alone £140 had been paid in 1708, and the
** Quart. Sess. Rec.
*" The post of governor might he held by a woman. Quart. Sess. Rec. Epiph. 1761.
2 Si II
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
applications for the office of petty constable at Bow Brickhill had been so
numerous as to arouse the suspicions of the bench that the constables had
made a considerable profit over this part of their duty. It was therefore
ordered that the yearly charge should be reduced to a certainty, and £80
a year was agreed upon as a suitable remuneration, to be paid to two men
recommended by the minister, overseers, and others of the parish. The
system of contracting for the carriage of vagrants was evidently found to be
satisfactory, and was adopted at various places in the county.
A scale of allowances to constables and governors of the houses of cor-
rection was also drawn up to regulate the treatment of vagrants on the road.
For food gd. a day, or yl. for each meal, was allowed ; the charges for the
hire of carts and sufficient horses was settled, and the constable or guide
conducting the vagrants received is. a day, including his maintenance, with
3</. per mile for his horse. If a vagrant died on the road i QJ. was allowed
for his burial, and the charge of the justices' clerk for making out a vagrant's
passport was limited to is.
Up to the close of the reign of George II the labourers seem to have
been prosperous, and the poor relief given on more or less strict lines,
able-bodied labourers not often receiving relief unless work was done.
The prosperity of the labourer was but the reflection of the prosperity
of the farmer in the early part of the eighteenth century, after the conclu-
sion of peace in 1713. The introduction of improved methods, encouraged
by the Board of Agriculture, brought great profits to the farmers and in-
creased the rents of the landlords, in spite of the low prices during the
peace. The inclosure of common fields was urgently recommended by the
Board, since improvements were impossible under the old system of common
cultivation. Inclosure was urged on the different parishes, for the purpose
of arable farming, and not for the conversion of land to pasture. In Bucking-
hamshire it had been recognized that much of the land was not suitable for
sheep-farming, being too heavy and wet, so that the inclosures at this time were
not accompanied by evictions. An Act of Parliament was in many cases obtained
for the inclosure of each parish, and the tenants of strips in the common fields
were awarded separate fields and meadows, to be cultivated in severally and
inclosed with hedges. The first Act was obtained to inclose the common
fields at Ashendon in 1739, and two more were passed in 1743 and 1745 for
Wotton Underwood and Shipton in Winslow respectively. Between 1760
and 1770 there were eight inclosures, and between 1770 and 1780 sixteen.
In the following decade the numbers dropped to five, but there were a series
of bad harvests to account for the decrease. The number rose between 1770
and 1780 to twelve, and between 1800 and 1810 to fifteen, and inclosures
were made continuously during the next fifty years ; other instances occur
later, but the rate of inclosures by Act lessened, and many fields must have
been inclosed under an agreement between the tenants.
Two reports to the Board of Agriculture,804 dated 1794 and 1813, fully
describe the methods of farming and the terms of tenancy which prevailed
in the eighteenth century. In the earlier report, the area of the county
was reckoned at 518,400 statute acres, and of these 91,000 odd lay in
104 W. James and J. Malcolm, Gen. View of Agru. of Bucks, (i 794), and Rev. St. John Priest, Gen. View
ofA&ic. of Bucks. (1813).
82
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
common fields, and 6,000 odd were waste lands, so that further inclosures
were recommended.
Uninclosed lands formed but one of the obstacles to improvements,
however, the terms of tenancy being a further difficulty. Some farmers only
held their lands by an agreement from year to year, and had therefore no
security for their occupation, and were not ready to sink their capital in their
land. Others had leases, but these were often for a short term of years, with
bad covenants with regard to the system of cropping. This was specially
the case with the common fields, in which the old mediaeval rotation of two
crops and a fallow was still the custom ; but near Hardwick the leases allowed
three crops and a fallow, though no clover. In inclosed parishes a better
system as a rule prevailed and turnips were introduced, especially in the
Chiltern districts, where the farming was good. Leases often contained
penalties for certain offences, such as breaking up pasture and cutting down
timber. In consequence a great deal of damage was done at the end of a
lease, the profit to the tenant being much above the penalty to be enforced.
The land in the open fields was held in strips by the yardland, which varied
in size from 28 to 40 acres in different parts of the county, and the tenants
had various pasture rights in the meadows and commons. Inclosure often
did away with these rights, and was especially a loss to the poorer inhabitants,
who could no longer keep a cow on the common. The baulks, or divisions
between the strips, which had been used generally for pasture, were now
ploughed up and the meadows were no longer thrown open after hay harvest,
hence in most places the number of cattle and sheep decreased after inclosure.
The Board of Agriculture also considered that all commons and wastes should
be cultivated as arable land, but the only commons inclosed by Act of Par-
liament about this time were Hyde Heath at Chesham and the Pasture and
Doggett's Furze at Olney.
In the common fields ploughing in straight furrows had rarely been
introduced, but the old method of starting in the centre and ploughing in a
serpentine form was still followed, to the great detriment of the crops. The
improvements effected by inclosures are clearly shown in the difference of the
rents of the two kinds of land. In the parishes of Aston Clinton, Weston
Turville, and Buckland, where the soil was good, the rents of inclosures were
double the rents in the open fields, and elsewhere they were very considerably
higher.
By 1813 dairy-farming in the vale, and to some extent in the district to
the north, had followed on the inclosure of land, and very high rents were
obtained for the pastures. The average rent, tithes included, was 4U., but
as much as £3 an acre was given in some places. In the south the rents of
the arable land were more moderate, averaging jTi o/. 6d. an acre, though at
Fawley it was let at from IQJ. to i8j., and at Horton at 45^. an acre. Sheep-
farming was generally on the decrease, though in some instances the breed of
sheep had been considerably improved.
In the Vale the inclosures were on a small scale, generally from 10 to
20 acres, in spite of their being mainly on dairy farms ; still some fields
contained 30 acres and upwards. In the south the inclosures on the arable
farms were on a larger scale.
At this time Buckinghamshire had ceased to be purely an agricultural
83
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
district, since a large part of the population were engaged in lace-making and
straw-plaiting, according to the census of 1801. The lace trade had been
.increasing throughout the eighteenth century, and silk lace, as well as the
older thread lace, was made in larger quantities. In 1794 the chief manu-
factures were lace and paper, but the number of persons employed in them
was not sufficient to affect the supply of agricultural labour, though the best
wages were higher than those of the ordinary labourer. In the later report
to the Board of Agriculture, however, lace-making and straw-plaiting occu-
pied a great number of women, and the farmers could get little work done
for them by women. Lace was chiefly made in the northern part of the
county, especially in the district round Newport Pagnel and Olney. At
Hanslope,205 in 1802, 800 persons were employed in the trade, the population
being returned in the census of the previous year as 1,289. Children were
sent to lace schools at the age of five or six, and both boys and girls were
able to support themselves at twelve years old. Men also made lace when
agricultural employment was scarce, and they could earn as good wages as if
they were doing their ordinary work.
Throughout the eighteenth century the ordinary labourer seems to have
had is. a day, but in the legal wages practically no change took place ; the
only exception was in the case of servants hired by the year. In the scale of
wages of ij6$*M all classes of servants were allowed IQJ. above the previous
rate.
£ '. d. £ ,. d.
Chief bailiffs had 6 10 o in the Chilterns and 6 o 0 in the Vale.
Ordinary servants 4 10 O „ „ 400,, „
Boys from 16 to 20 3 o O „ „ 2 10 o „ ,,
Boys from 12 to 16 2 O O „ „ 1134 „ „
This did not represent the real rise, for in 1794 207 the head man was receiv-
ing on an average 8 guineas in the interior of the county and 10 guineas in
the south, while a boy had 3 guineas and 4 guineas respectively in the two
districts.
This rise was not neutralized by a greater rise in prices. In 1 670 wheat
was sold at Aylesbury for 6s.ioa a bushel, and barley for 3^. and 2s. jd. a
bushel, but in 1702 barley was at is. yd., and the average value of wheat
between 1721 to 1784 decreased from ^s. %d. to 4*. i*/.209 At the close of
the century a series of bad harvests brought to an end the period of prosperity
and caused much distress among the labourers, although the farmers and land-
lords made great profits on the high prices obtainable for all kinds of corn.
Besides the bad harvests, the French war and the consequent heavy
taxation pressed most heavily on the labourers, in spite of the efforts of the
government to afford relief during the dearth. The two houses of Parlia-
ment signed an agreement to reduce the consumption of corn by one-third
in their houses, and similar action was taken by certain privy councillors,
•who sent a copy of their resolution to the lords-lieutenant calling upon the
magistrates and others in the counties to follow their example. In the
summer of 1795 the Buckinghamshire justices210 undertook only to use
"' Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, iv, 164. *oe Quart. Sess. Rec. East. 1765.
07 James and Malcolm, Gen. View of Agrlc. of Bucks. (1794). im Overseers' Accts. Aylesbury.
m St. John Priest, Gen. View of Agric. of Bucks. (1813). 110 Quart. Sess. Rec. Mids. 1795.
84 '
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
' Standard wheaten bread ' as defined in the Act of 1 3 Geo. Ill, in which the
flour used was to include the whole produce of the grain, excepting the bran
and hull. They ordered the constables of the different parishes to present
both the bakers who made or sold any finer bread and those who had bought
it; further, the justices undertook to reduce the use of flour in other food but
bread in their households, and the quantity of oats and barley consumed by
their horses, begging all other families in the county to do the same.
At the Michaelmas sessions"1 of the same year, after another deficient
harvest, the magistrates described the prices as exorbitant, and issued orders
respecting forestallers of corn. Any person, who bought corn, which was
coming to any market or fair to be sold in the same fair ; who made any
bargain for buying corn before it came to market ; who did or said anything
to enhance the price, or persuaded anyone to withhold corn from the markets;
who kept back their own corn — was to be proceeded against with ' the utmost
rigour of the law.' Corn growing in the fields might not be bought or
obtained in any manner with the intention of selling (excepting it was
obtained by demise, or grant, or lease of land, or tithes). All such offenders
were to be presented by the petty constables. The prisoners in gaol had
potatoes substituted for part of their allowance of bread ; churchwardens and
overseers and governors of hospitals and workhouses were recommended to
provide for the poor bread made of a mixture of wheat and barley, flour or
potatoes, and to distribute such bread, instead of giving the whole of their
allowances in money.
Similar orders were made throughout the county, but in i8oos12 the
justices admitted that they had failed in their efforts, in so far as they had
attempted to restrain the use of finer bread than the Standard Wheaten Loaf,
since the adjoining counties had made no such restrictions, and therefore finer
bread was freely imported into the county.
The rate of wages during this shortage is so closely connected with the
working of the poor laws, that it is impossible to discuss the action of the
justices to relieve the distress of the population without first considering the
operation of the Poor Law at this time.
In the later part of the eighteenth century a change took place in the
principles which ruled the administration of poor relief, a change based on a
philanthropic desire to improve the condition of the poor during a period
of great scarcity and distress. In 1782 Gilbert's Act, though mainly dealing
with the formation of voluntary unions of parishes with one workhouse in
the union under the charge of paid guardians, also ordered that only the
impotent should be admitted to the workhouse and the able-bodied were to
have work provided for them near their homes. In 1796 a further step was
taken ; the test of 1722 was abolished and out-door relief was legalized.
Legislation in this case followed the practice of the overseers, since at
Aylesbury the first entry of out-relief being given to an able-bodied man
appears in 1784, when is. was given to William Stevens 'being out of work,'
and in the winter such entries became very frequent. The weekly allowance
to the poor 'out of the house' was a regular entry; and roundsmen, or
labourers who were sent to work with various employers, but received
reduced wages from the overseers, were now entered for the first time. The
'" Quart. Sess. Rec. Mich. 1795. '" Ibid. 1800.
85
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
roundsmen increased in number with great rapidity, and the evil of the system
was recognized by the justices in 1795, but their remedy was even worse
than the system itself. ' The court,' at the Epiphany sessions —
took into consideration the having appeared to the Magistrates now assembled that the
mode adopted in many parishes of the County of employing all poor labourers indiscrimi-
nately as Roundsmen at an under price hath been attended with great inconvenience and
abuse and requires a speedy and effectual remedy. And it appearing to this court that the
following are at this time absolutely necessary for the support of the industrious labourer
and his family and that where it happens the labourer and his wife and such of his children
as may be able, duly and honestly perform several labours on which they may be employed
and yet do not earn the weekly sum after mentioned, the same ought to be made up to
them by the parish officers :
For a single man according to his labour.
For a man and wife not less than 6s.
„ „ „ „ „ with one or two small children Js.
For every additional child under the age of 10 years is.
The effect of this order was naturally the lowering of wages and a great
increase in the poor rates, for the farmers agreed in many places to give less
than the minimum fixed by the justices and the residue fell on the rates.
In 1785 the whole expenditure for the year at Aylesbury was
jTi,o6o los. o\d., but in 1805 it had risen to be £3,022 6s. yd. In 1789
five collections had been made at 6d. in the £, but in 1801 there were
eleven collections at the increased rate of is. The Buckinghamshire justices
had perceived at the end of five years the evils to which this system of
subsidizing labour led — lowering wages and pressing most unfairly on non-
employers of labour, tradesmen and farmers cultivating their land themselves
— and the report at the Michaelmas sessions of 1 800 showed them to have
been considerably in advance of their contemporaries in the theory of poor
relief. In an order ' respecting servants' wages ' they stated that great
inconvenience had been caused by the neglect in carrying out the Act of
1 60 1, a neglect partly due to imperfections in the statute : —
In many instances the wages of the industrious labourers in husbandry has been set by
agreement of the land occupants at a rate greatly below the real value of labour, as com-
pared with the usual price of corn or Common wages of Labourers in constant employ,
within the same parish and to which is then added under the name of relief such allowance
from the parish rates as the Overseers of themselves may administer or the Magistrates
direct.
That those labourers usually known as roundsmen (being of ability for fair and ordinary
earning from labour) are appointed on each occupant according to the supposed value of his
occupancy at reduced wages. It appearing at this moment they are paid in most parts of
the County only 6s. for the week and in some parishes as low as 4*. per week, being a sum
wholly inadequate for their labour.
The order further said that the remainder of the sum necessary for the
labourers' subsistence was paid from the rates, and was often a charge on
those who obtained no benefit from the labour. The bad effects which this
system produced on the morals, general habits, and industry of the labourer
was commented on, and a change of practice was advocated which would
throw the price of labour where it ought ultimately to fall. The only
practical remedies suggested, however, were an increased facility for justices
in dealing with the rate of wages, the enforcement of the Acts relating to
the wages of labourers, and the appointment of a committee of four men
to act with the magistrates of each hundred where such practices were the
86
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
rule, and to direct the clerk of the peace to indict anyone found guilty of
such a misdemeanour. They added in explanation of the second recommen-
dation that the Acts were to be carried into effect by the magistrates so as to
force the employer to pay an adequate price for his labour — a curious state-
ment, when the original object of the labour statutes is considered.
The court also stated with great emphasis that the appropriation of
money raised for the relief of the poor to able-bodied labourers was a gross
misapplication, and that the accounts of overseers guilty of such misapplica-
tion ought not to be allowed. Three parishes are mentioned as having
enforced the proper payment of their labourers — Whitchurch, Aston Clinton,
and Weston Turville. The following year the justices realized that the scale
of wages, last fixed in 1765, was far below the rates that ought to be paid for
labour, and therefore a new rate was to be drawn up. The new scale was
published at the next Easter sessions, and in it the wages for all kinds of
labour were practically doubled, the lowest payment of a man per day being
is. 6d. The rates for carriage were also increased, particularly in the case of
long distances.
The protest seems to have had little or no effect. At Aylesbury there is still
the Parish Labour Register from 1804-13, giving full details of the amounts
paid weekly to different labourers, still much below the full rate of wages.
The effect on the labourers themselves was all that the report had said.
As early as 1795 at Winslow they were described as having become 'very
lazy and imperious.' There was also difficulty in obtaining labour, since
men found it paid them better to do but little work and receive a large
amount of relief.818
In 1826 a large land-holder at Aylesbury was summoned before the
magistrates for having refused to pay his poor rate. His defence was that in
consequence of the relief given to able-bodied men he could get no one to
work for him. He had found 300 people waiting at his farm to lease his
corn, but even though he could not get in his crops for want of men, no one
of the 300 would accept employment, since they could do better with the
overseers.
The highest figure at Aylesbury in the expenditure was reached in
1 8 1 6, but the succeeding years showed a considerable decline, probably owing
to the appointment of a paid assistant overseer. This reform was due to the
recommendations of a Committee of the House of Commons, whose inquiry
revealed the worst features of the system. Few of their suggestions were
carried out, except the appointment of assistant overseers. At Aylesbury he
received a yearly salary of £52, an(i was able to devote the whole of his time
to the control of poor relief, with the result that the expenses were reduced,
till in 1826 the annual expenditure was less, by more than £2,000, than it was
in 1 8 17. In other parishes, however, no such reduction took place, an extreme
case being found at Cholesbury, where the poor rates had been £10 I is. in
1 80 1, but in 1832 had risen to £367. No further increase was then
possible, since the poor rate had eaten up the value of the land, and farms
were standing empty.
" The scarcity in women's labour was due to their employment in the lace and straw-plaiting manufac-
tures. In the former they could make from yd. to I/. \d. a day, and in the latter jo/, a week in some cases.
St. John Priest, op. cit.
87
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
The powers of the justices to grant relief were somewhat curtailed, but
no adequate reform was effected until 1834, when the new Poor Law was
passed, founded on the report of the Royal Commission appointed to investi-
gate the operation of the poor laws. In 1830 and 1831 there were riots in
various agricultural districts, resulting in the appointment of this commission,
and the condition of the labourers is fully shown in the answers to inquiries
made in various parishes. The riots were not serious in the greater part of
Buckinghamshire, but the cause was said very generally to be the adminis-
tration of the poor laws. The rector of Sherington 2U described how their
action created a hostile spirit between labourers and employers, and destroyed
all feelings of reciprocal dependence and goodwill between the richer and
poorer classes. The report from Amersham is interesting in this connexion :
there had been no disposition to riot at all, owing to the wants of the poor
having been supplied by charitable people. Though this may not have been
economically sound, the distribution of this private relief had resulted in the
higher and trading classes having much greater intercourse with the poor
generally. In parts where this intercourse had not been achieved the labourers
claimed exemption from all consequences of their misconduct and imprudence,
knowing of no limit to their legal exactions upon the farmer. They con-
sidered the stacks of corn as their own property and wages or allowances as
their right, gaining their demands by terrifying the farmers and burning
stacks. Even if an increase in wages was gained by these means the allow-
ance system continued, and no real improvement took place in the relations
between farmers and labourers. Lack of employment even increased, owing
to the great reluctance to invest capital in any form of agriculture.
The risings took place almost exclusively in counties where the rates
were highest and the tendencies of the poor law most fatally developed, and
within the county itself the disturbances were most severe where the adminis-
tration was the most imprudent. Everywhere the parish had stepped in
between the farmer and labourer as a middleman of the worst kind. In
most places the farmers had no interest in the labourers supplied to them
without consideration of the needs of their land, so that sympathy between
the two classes was killed.
The methods of giving out-relief were various : it was occasionally
given in kind, more often in money without labour, but the three most
ordinary methods were the roundsman system, parish employment, and the
labour-rate system. The roundsman system has already been described at
Aylesbury, but in the early days of out-relief it cannot have been on quite
the same lines. The commissioners described it as a system of paying
occupiers of property to employ applicants for relief, at a rate of wages fixed
by the parish, not dependent on services but on the wants of the applicants,
the employer being repaid out of the poor rates all he advanced in wages
beyond a certain sum. Parish employment was work provided by the over-
seers, generally on the roads or in stone-pits, where labourers were sent to
work in large gangs with little or no superintendence.
The labour-rate system consisted of an agreement amongst rate-payers,
that each of them should employ and pay out of his own money a certain
number of labourers, who had a claim of settlement, according to some
814 Poor Latv Com. Rep.
88
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
calculation of property. Such an agreement was made at Aylesbury m in
1831, when it was definitely stated that if a farmer employed any labourer
in excess of those due on his farm, he should only pay half the usual wages
and send him to the overseers for the remainder of the wages due.
The effect of this system was not only to depress the rate of wages, but
to increase the rates to such an extent that farming became unprofitable. At
Adstock agricultural profits were completely consumed by the rates ; near
Aylesbury forty-two farms were untenanted, and at Thornborough 600
acres were vacant in the hands of the landlord, whose other tenants had
mostly given notice to quit.
All such assessments of labourers on different farmers were made at
vestry meetings in the parishes, and no arrangement could be found that did
not press very unfairly on some employers. If the assessment was made by
the rateable value of a man's property, tradesmen, &c., had labourers sent
them for whom they had no employment ; or if it was made by the number
of acres in a farm, a large pasture farm, where little labour was needed, had
more men assessed to it than an arable farm, where double the number could
be employed.
On the labourers the poor law had an even more deplorable effect.
It was almost impossible for anyone not getting relief to obtain work, since
farmers could not afford to employ those for whom they were not bound by
law to provide.*18 At West Wycombe it was said that the notion of wages
as a contract beneficial to both parties seemed to be entirely obliterated.
The system of paying part of the wages for surplus labourers or for
roundsmen does not seem to have been universal in the county. It was the
prevailing practice in Adstock and the neighbouring parishes, Thornton and
Steeple Claydon, in the hundred of Buckingham ; and a general report
made for Ashendon Hundred stated that it had spread extensively in that
part of the county."7
In various parishes in Aylesbury and Newport Hundreds also it was the
custom to make up the wages out of the rates, but in the Chilterns they
were apparently little used for this purpose, no case occurring among the ten
parishes making returns.
An allowance from the parish made according to the number of children
in a labourer's family was not considered as paying part of his wages, and
was a very common custom. In the case of labourers working for individual
employers this allowance did not, as a rule, begin unless there were four or
five small children, but at Adstock a labourer with only two could claim an
allowance.
In fixing the rate of all wages, whether given by overseers or individual
employers, the size of the labourer's family formed the basis of calculation.
In the southern part of the county the scale fixed by the magistrates at
Aylesbury was very generally adopted, namely, 6s. for a man and his wife,
and is. more for each child, but at West Wycombe the scale began at 5*.
At Cholesbury is. each was not given for more than two children, and,
"• Gibbs, Hist, of Jjlaburj.
"* Sir H. Verne7 mentioned the case of a labourer who, being an old soldier with a pension, could
obtain no work at all from the surrounding farmers.
117 It was not the case at Oving.
2 89 12
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
apparently, no increase was made beyond four, a man with one child
receiving js., with two children BJ., but with four gs. bd.
In other parts of the county, particularly in the Buckingham and
Newport districts, the scale was fixed according to the value of the half-peck
loaf, three a week being allowed at Adstock for a man and his wife, and one
for each child, but elsewhere the allowance was sometimes less.
At Upton-cum-Chalvey the scale of wages was not only regulated by
the size of the family, since ' capacity, constitution, and age ' were taken into
consideration, and at several other places no fixed scale was adhered to, but
they can only be regarded as exceptions to the general rule. Leckhampstead
had developed a system peculiar to itself; no allowance per child was ever
given, but all children that the labourers were unable to maintain were taken
and kept in the workhouse. This established a workhouse test of the
worst possible character, falling on the children and not on the labourer ; but
the one saving feature in the system was the high wages fixed for a labourer
with a wife and three children. He received 14^. 6d. a week, or 4^. 6d. above
the allowance at Aylesbury. Frequently four children were maintained on
the same wages, rather than let them go to the workhouse, so that possibly
the system in the particular circumstances worked well.
Such a method of calculating the amount of wages led to a number of
improvident marriages, and a consequent increase in the population. Still
more was this the case when unmarried men received less than the married,
apart from the allowance for each child.
In the Chilterns there was, as a rule, no difference made, a good
labourer, married or unmarried, receiving the same treatment, and at
Burnham the comment was that such a distinction would have been an
encouragement to improvident marriages ; wages were the reward for labour,
and should properly be proportionate to the skill and exertions of the
labourer and not to the extent of his family.218 At West Wycombe,
however, an unmarried man received 4-r. if he was over twenty years old,
and 3-f. if under twenty, but a married man had 5-r.s19 Elsewhere there was
a considerable difference, as a rule the unmarried men earned only from
4-r. to 6s. a week, except in harvest-time, but a married man made 8s. to IQJ.
At Sherington there was a case of a married labourer having £i 31. 6d.
ordered for his weekly wages by a magistrate, but the size of his family was
not given.
There was another difference in the employment of unmarried men since
they were often only employed by the parish. In the neighbourhood of
Woolstone it was said that they were all roundsmen, paid by the parish at the
lowest rate, and in many instances they were driven out to seek employment
for themselves, so that boys of seventeen, eighteen, and nineteen were
induced to marry to establish a claim on the parish for support and main-
tenance.
A further result of the allowance system was the disappearance of piece-
work. In Desborough Hundred it was said not to answer since there were too
many men to be employed, and neither farmers nor overseers could afford to
18 At Upton-cum-Chalvey there was no difference for the best labourers, but ' feeling masters ' allowed
married men to do more of the hardest work by the piece, and therefore they had more money.
819 These wages were paid by both overseers and farmers.
90
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
let an industrious labourer work his hardest at piece-work. He would do
more than they could afford."0
Again, farmers did all they could to prevent a settlement being established
by their labourers in the parish, and so the old custom of hiring by the year
and boarding in had disappeared in many parts of the county. With regard
to the industry and skill of the labourers, the reports from the majority of
parishes complained of a great falling off, but the reasons given are not all
identical. In the Chilterns, as a whole, there was little difference in point of
skill ; Farnham Royal was the one instance where it was increasing, but
throughout the district drunkenness was a new and growing difficulty."1
At Bledlow the labourers were said to have less energy in their work
and to give less time to it, but that the wages too were less ; their actual
efficiency was, however, much the same. Elsewhere the unprofitable
employment of men in gangs, or as roundsmen, was the chief cause of the
decrease in the quality of labour. The wages were extremely low,2" and no
superintendence was exercised over the gangs of workmen, hence there was
no check upon idleness. A labourer said to Sir H. Verney, ' I had much
rather have parish work which does not exhaust my strength than farmer's
work and another shilling a week.'
At Steeple Claydon the causes of deterioration were summed up as the
round system, low wages, want of constant employment, and worse food, since
the labourers were no longer boarded in their masters' houses.
Another evil which arose from the poor relief was the habit of changing
masters, but it was generally due to the farmers, who did not wish to hire a
man for a long period."3 On the other hand, men had no fear of want by
leaving a place, since the parish gave them as much whether they worked
hard or not, and by working for the parish there was more time for working
in their gardens, &c.
The two cases at Burnham and Leckhampstead, where the best labourers
were employed on the same farms all the year round, and some of them at
the same farm for many years, were but rare exceptions, the majority of
farmers employing men sent to them at the choice of the overseers of the
poor.
In the parishes making returns to the commissioners in 1832, which
were situated in the southern part of the county, there had been practically
no riots at all ; but in the neighbourhood of Wycombe and Colnbrook "* the
disturbances had been serious. The paper mills in the valleys of the Wye
and the Colne were burnt down, and many men were convicted of riot and
arson, and suffered imprisonment or transportation. At Adstock, Bledlow,
Steeple Claydon, Oving, Sherington, and Turville, the disturbances were
attributed to want of employment, low wages, and the poor laws. At
Turville the rising was due to ' distress driving to desperation,' and only at
Oving was there a suggestion that new machinery was unpopular. The
"° But compare note on Upton-cum-Chalvey.
nl Beer-shops had sprung up in out-of-the-way comers, and are specially mentioned at Denham, Fawley,
and Taplow.
m At Whitchurch and Oving the wages at the stone-pits were $J. a day.
"' At Sherington, owing to the labour-assessment system, a farmer could not be certain of having the men
whom he would have been willing to employ for a long period sent to him by the overseen. A worse
workman might suddenly be substituted.
"• J. K. Fowler, Recoil, of Old Country Lift.
91
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
opportunities for planning the riots in all parts were found in the congregation
of large numbers of men in the stone-pits and on the roads, doing little work
under no supervision, or else in the beer-shops in out-of-the-way places. The
labourers in the north did not take part in the risings to so serious a degree,
possibly because of the extra employment in lace-making. The rate of wages
was also slightly better than in the southern districts. The riots were
certainly successful in their object in many cases, and higher wages at least
were obtained by unmarried labourers, but as late as 1834 a riot took place at
Aylesbury, the able-bodied paupers demanding higher wages.
The report of the Royal Commission was followed by the Poor Law
Amendment Act. The more important of its regulations were the appoint-
ment of the central board to control the local administration, the formation
of unions of parishes, each with a common workhouse for the district, and
the institution of the workhouse test in the case of all able-bodied persons
applying for relief. This brought to an end the whole system of allowances,
parish labour, or roundsmen, and in the future all labourers were paid their
wages by the master for whom they were working.
Not only did the artificial depression of wages cease, but the labourer
was no longer prevented from seeking better work in other parts of the
country by the necessity of remaining in his place of settlement.
At first a good deal of hardship must have ensued, especially as the price
of corn was still high. It had dropped to some extent after the conclusion of
peace, but in 1830, the wheat used in Aylesbury225 gaol was bought at prices
varying from £2 ijs. ^\d. a quarter to £3 I is. yd. a quarter ; flour was I is.
a bushel, and the i Ib. loaf of bread 2\d. to z\d. On the repeal of the
Corn Laws the fall in the price of wheat improved the purchasing power of
the labourer's wages, though these were not higher than 9^. or IQJ. a week
in the Vale, and 8j. in the Chilterns in i85o.226 After the poor-law
reform a rise had been effected, since in 1847, while higher prices still
prevailed, wages had been zs. or 3-r. a week more than in 1850. Foreign
competition affected the farmers in the Vale less than those in the Chilterns,
since dairy-farming was not influenced by the low prices. The nearness of
London provided the best market for butter and fat cattle, and 50^. an acre
was paid for the best grazing lands, while the comparatively high poor rates
caused but few complaints. As early as 1804 a market at Aylesbury for fat
cattle, in addition to the ordinary weekly cattle market, had been established,
and on the opening up of the country by railway communication fresh
facilities were afforded for supplying the London market. The population
was not large, and few labourers were out of employment, although only ten
to fourteen men were employed on a dairy farm of 300 to 400 acres.
In the Chiltern districts the low prices of corn occasioned very general
complaints. The farmer could not make arable farming pay when wheat was
less than 56^. to 64*. a quarter, and his rents had not fallen at all, the average
being 30^. an acre. Rather lower rents were paid in the south-eastern part
of the county, and market gardens were established near London.
As a rule the covenants as to cropping had died out, and the landlords
did not interfere, but some leases enforcing the rotation of three crops and a
fallow still existed.
m Quart. Sess. Rec. fle Caird, Brit. Agrlc. 1850-1.
92
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
The labourer's position had been improved to a great extent by the new
poor law, the low prices, and higher wages, but in the middle of the nine-
teenth century he had lost to a great extent the extra income obtained by his
family by lace-making and straw-plaiting. By the introduction of machinery
a much cheaper lace was made, and a foreign straw plait began to be imported
into the country, which to a great extent ruined the industry in Buckingham-
shire.
In the Amersham Union district a large number of people belong to
benefit societies, but elsewhere the old people come very largely on the rates,
and even where lace-making and straw-plaiting can still give some occupation
to women the earnings are extremely small. The low rate of wages largely
accounts for this, but that labourers have been able to save was shown in the
small holdings of a few acres,8*7 taken up at Claydon by labourers, who had
been earning 14*. a week.
In the Chilterns the farmers have suffered far more than in the Vale
during the agricultural depression. In 1894"* the rents of rich pasture lands
had fallen much less than those of purely arable land, in spite of the fact that
dairy produce also had fallen in price very considerably. The farmers,
however, complained less of railway rates than is common elsewhere, owing
to the competition between the three railway companies whose lines run
through the county. At that time there was no shortage of labour on the
farms in the Vale, but in many places it is an increasing difficulty in the way
of agriculture. The railway works at Wolverton, for instance, draw many
young men in the district away from agricultural work, attracted by the
higher wages paid at the works.
The average wage for the county for a labourer is 14^. 6</., but the
actual rate differs considerably not only in different districts, but on different
farms in the same neighbourhood. Thus on two farms in the Claydon
district there is a difference of is. in the wages paid to all classes of
labourers.*"
An interesting experiment has been made in the three Claydons of
establishing village libraries830 under the Public Libraries Acts. In towns
the free library supported by the rates has become a well-known institution,
but in villages it has been thought to be impossible. In these Buckingham-
shire villages, however, successful libraries have been established, and Middle
Claydon claims the distinction of being the first village in England at which
such a library has been opened. The neighbouring places also share the
benefits of the libraries on payment of a small subscription. Books are pro-
vided suitable for all ages of readers, and an interesting point about the move-
ment is the high standard of the books that are the most popular and eagerly
read in the cottages.
Aylesbury ducks have always been famous, and are kept by many of the
cottagers and small tradesmen. A high price can be obtained for the duck-
lings, and in this way a small addition to the regular wages can be obtained
by many of the labourers. Of late years also a determined attempt has been
*" Rtp. ofSeltct Com. an Small HoUtngi, 1889.
"* Ref. of Roy. Com. on Agri. 1897.
m From information supplied by Miss Ruth Verney.
00 Lady Verney, Pub. Lib. Acts in yillage Communitiei.
93
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
made to revive the cottage industries of the county. Under the auspices of
the North Bucks Lace Association, formed in 1897, lace-making has been
revived, and as far as possible a market has been found for the hand-made lace.
Old patterns have been brought to light, and the quality of the work, which
had greatly decreased during the decay of the industry, has also been
improved.
TABLE OF POPULATION, 1801 TO 1901
Introductory Notes
AREA
The county taken in this table is that existing subsequently to 7 & 8 Viet., chap. 61 (1844).
By this Act detached parts of counties, which had already for parliamentary purposes been amalga-
mated with the county by which they were surrounded or with which the detached part had the
longest common boundary (2 & 3 Will. IV, chap. 64 — 1832), were annexed to the same county for
all purposes ; some exceptions were, however, permitted.
By the same Act (7 & 8 Viet., chap. 61) the detached parts of counties, transferred to other
counties, were also annexed to the hundred, ward, wapentake, &c. by which they were wholly or
mostly surrounded, or to which they next adjoined, in the counties to which they were transferred.
The hundreds, &c. in this table also are given as existing subsequently to this Act.
As is well known, the famous statute of Queen Elizabeth for the relief of the poor took the then-
existing ecclesiastical parish as the unit for Poor Law relief. This continued for some centuries
with but few modifications ; notably by an Act passed in the thirteenth year of the reign of
Charles II which permitted townships and villages to maintain their own poor. This permission
was necessary owing to the large size of some of the parishes, especially in the north of England.
In 1 80 1 the parish for rating purposes (now known as the civil parish, i.e. 'an area for which
a separate poor rate is or can be made, or for which a separate overseer is or can be appointed ')
was in most cases co-extensive with the ecclesiastical parish of the same name ; but already there
were numerous townships and villages rated separately for the relief of the poor, and also there were
many places scattered up and down the country, known as extra-parochial places, which paid no rates
at all. Further, many parishes had detached parts entirely surrounded by another parish or parishes.
Parliament first turned its attention to extra-parochial places, and by an Act (20 Viet., chap. 19 —
1857) it was laid down (a) that all extra-parochial places entered separately in the 1851 census returns
are to be deemed civil parishes, (£) that in any other place being, or being reputed to be, extra-parochial,
overseers of the poor may be appointed, and (<:) that where, however, owners and occupiers of two-
thirds in value of the land of any such place desire its annexation to an adjoining civil parish, it may
be so added with the consent of the said parish. This Act was not found entirely to fulfil its object, so
by a further Act (31 & 32 Viet., chap. 122 — 1868) it was enacted that every such place remaining on
25 December, 1868, should be added to the parish with which it had the longest common boundary.
The next thing to be dealt with was the question of detached parts of civil parishes, which was
done by the Divided Parishes Acts of 1876, 1879, and 1882. The last, which amended the one of
1876, provides that every detached part of an entirely extra-metropolitan parish which is entirely
surrounded by another parish becomes transferred to this latter for civil purposes, or if the population
exceeds 300 persons it may be made a separate parish. These Acts also gave power to add detached
parts surrounded by more than one parish to one or more of the surrounding parishes, and also to
amalgamate entire parishes with one or more parishes. Under the 1879 Act it was not necessary
for the area dealt with to be entirely detached. These Acts also declared that every part added to
a parish in another county becomes part of that county.
Then came the Local Government Act, 1888, which permits the alteration of civil parish boun-
daries and the amalgamation of civil parishes by Local Government Board orders. It also created the
administrative counties. The Local Government Act of 1 894 enacts that where a civil parish is partly
in a rural district and partly in an urban district each part shall become a separate civil parish ; and
also that where a civil parish is situated in more than one urban district each part shall become a
separate civil parish, unless the county council otherwise direct. Meanwhile, the ecclesiastical parishes
had been altered and new ones created under entirely different Acts, which cannot be entered into
here, as the table treats of the ancient parishes in their civil aspect.
94
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
POPULATION
The first census of England was taken in 1801, and was very little more than a counting of the
population in each parish (or place), excluding all persons, such as soldiers, sailors, &c., who formed
no part of its ordinary population. It was the de facto population (i.e. the population actually
resident at a particular time) and not the de jure (i.e. the population really belonging to any par-
ticular place at a particular time). This principle has been sustained throughout the censuses.
The Army at home (including militia), the men of the Royal Navy ashore, and the registered
seamen ashore were not included in the population of the places where they happened to be, at the
time of the census, until 1841. The men of the Royal Navy and other persons on board vessels (naval
or mercantile) in home ports were first included in the population of those places in 1851. Others
temporarily present, such as gipsies, persons in barges, &c. were included in 1841 and perhaps earlier.
GENERAL
Up to and including 1831 the returns were mainly made by the overseers of the poor, and
more than one day was allowed for the enumeration, but the 1841-1901 returns were made under
the superintendence of the registration officers and the enumeration was to be completed in one day.
The Householder's Schedule was first used in 1841. The exact dates of the censuses are as follows : —
IO March, 1801 30 May, 1831 8 April, 1861 6 April, 1891
27 May, 1811 7 June, 1841 3 April, 1871 I April, 1901
28 May, 1821 31 March, 1851 4 April, 1881
NOTES EXPLANATORY OF THE TABLE
This table gives the population of the ancient county and arranges the parishes, &c. under the
hundred or other subdivision to which they belong, but there is no doubt that the constitution of
hundreds, &c. was in some cases doubtful.
In the main the table follows the arrangement in the 1 84 1 census volume.
The table gives the population and area of each parish, &c. as it existed in 1801, as far as possible.
The areas are those supplied by the Ordnance Survey Department, except in the case of those
marked ' e,' which were calculated by other authorities. The area includes inland water (if any),
but not tidal water or foreshore.
t after the name of a civil parish indicates that the parish was affected by the operation of the
Divided Parishes Acts, but the Registrar-General failed to obtain particulars of every such change.
The changes which escaped notification were, however, probably small in area and with little, if any,
population. Considerable difficulty was experienced both in 1891 and 1901 in tracing the results
of changes effected in civil parishes under the provisions of these Acts ; by the Registrar-General's
courtesy, however, reference has been permitted to certain records of formerly detached parts of parishes,
which has made it possible approximately to ascertain the population in 1901 of parishes as constituted
prior to such alterations, though the figures in many instances must be regarded as partly estimates.
* after the name of a parish (or place) indicates that such parish (or place) contains a union
workhouse which was in use in (or before) 1851 and was still in use in 1901.
t after the name of a parish (or place) indicates that the ecclesiastical parish of the same name
at the 1901 census was co-extensive with such parish (or place).
O in the table indicates that there is no population on the area in question.
— in the table indicates that no population can be ascertained.
The word 'chapelry' seems often to have been used as an equivalent for 'township* in 1841,
which census volume has been adopted as the standard for names and descriptions of areas.
The figures in italics in the table relate to the area and population of such subdivisions of
ancient parishes as chapelries, townships, and hamlets.
95
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
TABLE OF POPULATION
1801 — 1901
—
Acre-
age
1801
1811
1821
1831
1841
1851
1861
1871
1881
1891
1901
Ancient or Geographi-
cal County*
477.151
107,900
117,864
134.522
146,977
156,439
163,723
167,993
175.926
176,323
185,458
195.905
PARISH
Acre-
age
1801
1811
1821
1831
1841
1851
1861
1871
1881
1891
1901
Ashendon
Hundred
Ashendon . . .
2,128
248
319
339
368
312
290
325
274
237
199
212
Aston Sandford % .
679
71
76
84
82
86
88
59
58
59
48
46
Boarstall ....
3,078
179
1 88
231
268
252
243
255
244
209
188
IS'
Brill f
^,IOQ
8?9
864
i, 060
1,281
1. 440
I. in
1.4^2
T.-2C-3
i 280
1. 251
1, 2o6
ChearsleyJ . . .
j) i vy
943
j y
214
217
263
1 J
337
,^^7
308
* J 3
292
• ,T 3
287
*,J J J
3"
* t~,P
235
* ,*O
242
212
ChiltonJ. . . .
2,069
316
338
379
3M
364
398
364
336
301
287
285
Claydon, East . .
2,396
299
3°9
339
336
378
36l
385
376
341
343
336
Claydon, Middle .
2,640
103
129
1 60
136
127
I6S
146
'39
225
227
231
Crendon, Long" f I
3,46i
991
989
1,212
1,382
1,656
1,700
1,570
1,365
1,179
1,187
1,075
Dorton ....
1,477
105
124
133
158
IS'
'39
137
125
in
137
140
Fleet Marston 8 J .
934
46
43
41
38
3°
23
37
27
51
53
Grandborough J .
1,580
230
251
286
341
345
359
374
367
300
301
297
Grendon
2,536
285
271
312
379
384
427
45 i
448
365
373
323
Underwood f t
Hogshaw with
1,322
55
55
68
48
So
5°
5°
61
62
78
56
Fulbrook
Ickford (part of) 4 .
1,025
271
308
324
382
374
398
416
398
354
345
3'9
llmerf . . . .
684
74
69
68
78
79
82
79
70
63
48
5'
Kingsey (part
915
165
169
204
222
178
202
171
'45
'Si
124
85
of)6t
Ludgershall J : —
2,823
396
412
576
585
566
514
536
500
422
422
354
Ludgershall f
2,562
359
—
520
500
461
482
461
395
382
325
Kingswood
261
37
—
56
66
53
54
39
27
40
29
Hamlet
Marston, North
1,983
478
5i3
558
606
619
692
644
643
649
580
524
Oakley \\ . . .
2,283
305
329
382
4'3
391
425
420
442
421
445
398
OvingJ . . . .
990
257
306
372
384
391
442
436
440
385
364
3l8
PitchcottJ . . .
925
51
56
44
28
68
59
36
51
35
4i
40
Quainton J : —
5,346
870
942
1,017
1,056
i, 08 1
945
929
921
865
885
838
Quainton
3,805
750
848
911
952
966
854
864
858
804
807
787
Township f
Shipton Lee
1,541
120
94
106
104
115
91
65
63
61
78
51
Hamlet f
Quarrendon . .
1,948
55
54
68
60
64
64
58
56
37
52
65
Shabbington f J .
2,152
184
242
241
298
366
397
371
395
351
302
262
Towersey J . . .
1,380
294
325
367
403
413
448
449
434
342
349
305
i Ancient County.— The County as defined by the Act 7*8 Viet. cap. 61. This Act affected Buckinghamshire to the
following extent: — (A) Annexed to it (i) Lillingstowe Lovell Ancient Parish, (2) Boycott Hamlet in Stowe Ancient
Parish, (3) Coleshill Hamlet in Amersham Ancient Parish, and (4) the part of Lewknor Ancient Parish shown in this
Table; (B) severed from it (i) Studley Hamlet in Beckley Ancient Parish (to Oxfordshire), and Caversfield Ancient
Parish (to Oxfordshire).
The population given in this Table for 1811 is exclusive of 201, and for 1821 of 611, militiamen who could not be
assigned to the places to which they belonged (see also notes to Ickford, Kingsey, Luffield Abbey, Ibstone, Lewknor,
Stony Stratford West Side, and Stoke Poges).
' Long Crendon. — Migration to Redditch to seek work in the manufacture of needles was said, in 1861, to be partly
the cause of the decline in population.
3 Fleet Marston. — The population may have been included in that given for Waddesdon Ancient Parish in 1801.
* Ickford. — The remainder is in Oxfordshire (Ewelme Hundred). The entire population is shown in Buckingham-
shire, 1801-31.
5 Kingsey. — The remainder is in Oxfordshire (Lewknor Hundred). The entire population is shown in Bucking-
hamshire, 1801-31. The population given for the part in Buckinghamshire in 1841 is too small owing to an error as
to the boundary between the Buckinghamshire part and the Oxfordshire part.
96
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
TABLE OF POPULATION, 1801—1901 (continue*)
PARISH
Acre-
age
1801
1811
1821
i8jl
1841
1851
1861
1871
1881
1891
1901
Aihendon
Hundred (cont)
Waddesdon »• J : —
7,282
1,292
1,283
1,616
',734
1,75°
',743
1,786
1,838
1,651
',959
1,837
VVaddesdon
5,546
1fi40
7,0 20
1J27
1,454
1,408
1,439
1,470
If OS
M75
1f37
7,547
Township t
Westcott Hamlet
1,411
231
228
261
242
303
273
278
296
245
282
255
Woodham
325
21
35
28
38
39
31
38
37
31
40
35
Hamlet t
Winchendon,
'iS54
244
266
284
294
291
284
3'6
283
257
272
222
Nether \
Winchendon,
1,202
206
204
216
223
218
1 86
220
209
1 88
'So
142
Upper t
Wotton Under-
2,487
213
254
344
3'2
26S
253
266
235
221
247
235
woodf J
Worminghall J
1,510
266
*54
3'4
297
3'4
360
354
34'
303
269
247
Aylesbury
Hundred
Aston Clinton : —
3,809
721
823
908
1,001
1,025
1,096
',297
',435
',495
',393
',279
Aston Clinton
—
584
652
723
854
847
928
1,108
1,235
1J17
1J46
1,131
Township J
St Leonard
—
137
171
185
147
178
168
189
200
178
147
148
Hamlet \
Bierton with
2,442
518
5°3
620
605
605
688
691
746
812
982
827
Broughton t
Bledlow with
4,169
917
93'
1,050
','35
1,205
1,202
1,189
1,170
1,070
978
854
Bledlow Ridge •
Bucklandtt .
',555
288
33'
496
510
537
662
732
820
863
847
730
CuddingtonJ .
', 3°»
435
462
547
620
626
623
590
532
4/6
443
455
Uinton'J . .
3.897
668
713
817
893
818
859
814
790
718
747
663
Ellesborough \ .
3,595
480
469
581
665
708
782
724
703
608
641
577
Haddenham \ .
3,274
964
1,038
1,294
1484
1,545
',703
',623
i,5'4
',443
1,282
1,223
Halton t . . •
J,456
'59
171
'95
209
198
'57
'47
'55
'95
226
1 88
Hampden, Great t
1,763
228
235
281
286
290
308
266
262
255
246
207
Harupden, Little t
5'S
79
69
88
105
83
73
68
6l
46
76
48
Hartwellt . .
911
"5
221
>33
'37
138
'5'
'37
'43
146
ii.s
118
Horsenden . .
535
52
34
5°
37
27
5'
45
46
46
39
35
Hulcottft . .
717
117
125
'39
'45
'33
150
'43
125
"9
1 08
88
Kimble, Greatf
2,507
3>6
3>9
360
436
489
501
408
459
422
395
345
Kimble, Little f
850
142
'43
165
176
'77
184
182
203
161
'7o
158
Lee ....
502
150
172
198
186
142
126
116
104
122
"9
125
Missenden, Great
5,820
1,411
',576
',735
1,827
2,225
2,097
2,250
2,278
2,170
2,385
2,166
Missenden, Little
3,214
625
678
814
937
1,011
1,142
1,089
1,148
1,113
1,136
1,112
Risborough,
2,873
768
899
934
i, 01 8
',083
1,064
985
938
847
810
7'4
Monks t
Risborough.Princes
4,697
',554
1,644
1,958
2,122
2,206
2,3 '7
2,392
2,549
2,418
2,318
2,189
Stoke Mandeville f
',773
248
34'
402
461
493
538
477
528
497
480
4"
Stone7 1 . . . .
2,568
5'5
592
716
773
809
785
1,094
1,292
1,368
',433
',393
Wendover t . . .
5,832
1,397
1,481
1,602
2,008
',877
',937
1,932
2,033
1,902
2,036
2,009
Weston Turville J
2,323
497
524
611
637
718
748
724
812
824
79'
720
Buckingham
Hundred
Addington J . .
1,303
93
99
89
72
84
7«
III
141
'34
100
1 02
AdstockJ . . .
i, 166
289
3'4
393
445
419
393
385
383
352
330
329
Akeley t . . . .
1,325
245
257
295
291
362
373
366
378
387
380
34i
Barton HartshornJ
892
100
92
"3
'45
165
'37
126
127
in
102
78
Beachampton J
1,528
187
217
251
254
248
248
272
283
217
181
1 80
Biddlesden ft • •
2,052
147
160
'75
184
169
144
169
150
125
124
84
ChetwodeJ . . .
1,171
123
98
'3'
'49
197
217
'77
'73
'55
170
'57
Edgcottf . . .
1,140
122
121
1 60
i So
'95
193
182
224
'87
150
136
FoscottJ . . .
719
85
9'
"9
107
"9
99
96
79
72
58
46
HillesdenJ . . .
2,606
183
216
247
251
262
244
251
274
221
'97
181
LeckhampsteadJ .
2,57"
346
397
S'9
499
505
518
482
447
340
302
241
*• See note 3, unit.
• Dinlim also extends Into Ashendon and Desborough Hundreds. It is entirely shown In Aylesbury Hundred.
' Slant. — The increase in population in 1861 is attributed to the erection of the County Lunatic Asylum between
1851 and 1861 ; the Asylum was enlarged between 1861 and 1871.
2 97 '3
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
TABLE OF POPULATION, 1801—1901 (continued)
PARISH
Acre-
age
1801
iSn
1821
1831
1841
1851
1861
1871
1881
1891
1901
Buckingham
Hundred — cont.)
Lillingstone
2,223'
III
132
127
150
187
207
198
250
275
273
259
Dayrell ft
Lillingstone
1,269'
135
144
1 60
159
140
171
185
152
161
156
'37
LovellfJ
Luffield Abbey
216
16
—
—
10
5
17
18
5
8
7
6
Extra Par. 8
Maids' Moreton J .
1,366
239
3'S
407
474
570
573
543
5"
448
444
425
Marsh Gibbon J .
2,818
534
6?6
738
812
863
944
858
876
743
696
598
Padbury J . . .
2,029
459
510
618
708
696
660
550
60 1
530
490
439
Preston Bissett J .
l.523
322
337
396
502
5i7
554
469
485
344
31'
290
Radclive J . . .
1,186
252
227
296
334
364
387
356
339
367
321
295
Shalstone with]
The Den, or h
1,383
158
183
201
198
20 1
247
246
232
1 86
172
205
Old Wick |
Steeple Claydon J
3,329
646
704
804
881
849
869
946
906
852
780
721
Stowe't. . . .
3,088
3"
395
478
490
410
342
352
370
338
3"
246
Thornborough J
2,392
458
539
572
673
762
754
694
687
577
564
481
Thornton . . .
1,347
85
70
78
94
101
103
in
103
67
80
78
Tingewick J
2,178
642
711
832
866
911
877
914
945
787
7'4
635
Turweston \ . .
1,295
211
252
3M
371
361
322
335
362
305
269
257
Twyford J : —
4,458
517
547
623
660
754
848
694
596
56i
554
534
Twyford . . .
1,567
296
317
367
416
452
577
429
346
339
349
340
Charndon
7,9/7
146
153
165
160
190
204
170
165
150
131
148
Hamlet
Poundon Hamlet
980
75
77
91
84
112
133
95
85
72
74
46
Water Stratford J .
I,IO2
143
160
167
1 86
172
179
179
227
1 88
'37
"3
Westbury ft . .
2,530
308
320
345
391
471
458
379
419
417
357
302
Burnham
Hundred
Amersham \ : —
7,969
2,3M
2,688
3,104
3,313
3,645
3,662
3,550
3,259
3,001
3,129
3,209
Amersham *
6,119
2,130
2,259
2,612
2,816
3,098
3,104
3,0 J 9
2,726
2,500
2,613
2,674
Coleshill Hamlet
1,850
184
429
492
497
547
558
531
533
501
516
535
Beaconsfield J . .
4,5°4
1,149
1,461
1,736
1,763
1,732
1,684
1,662
I,524
1,635
',773
1,570
Burnham : —
6,866
1,519
1,640
I,9l8
2,137
2,284
2,301
2,233
2,281
2,356
2,9'5
3,689
Burnham f . .
6,383
1,354
1,490
1,716
1,930
2,095
2,142
2,081
2,179
2,241
2,513
3,144
Boveney,
483
165
150
202
207
189
159
152
102
115
402
545
Lower Chap.
Chalfont St. Giles J
3,726
762
924
1,104
1,297
1,228
1,169
1,217
1,243
1,264
1,286
1,362
Chalfont St. Peter
4,758
', '74
1,153
1,351
1,416
1,483
1,482
1,344
1,459
1,456
1,509
1,753
Chenies, or Isle-
i,759
423
510
595
649
625
565
468
495
388
378
324
hampstead
Cheyneys J
Chesham . . .
12,746
3,969
4,441
5,032
5,388
5,593
6,098
5,985
6,488
6,502
8,0 1 8
9,005
Chesham Bois J .
910
135
130
100
157
218
185
218
258
35'
552
767
Dorney t ...
1,560
190
247
279
268
324
355
367
374
3'9
401
358
Farnham Royal : —
3, '04
851
1,053
1,149
1,193
1,258
1,298
1,378
1,443
1,5/6
1,586
1,647
Farnham Royal
1,664
550
624
686
777
792
787
817
884
1,042
1,053
1,162
Hedgerley Dean
551
77
180
199
777
185
196
227
242
204
249
200
Hamlet
Seer Green
889
224
249
264
245
281
315
334
317
330
284
285
Hamlet J
Hitcham ....
1,484
200
161
172
232
267
236
205
270
395
5'2
553
Penn9 . . . .
3,992
927
950
1,054
'.'°3
1,040
1,254
1,096
1, 086
I,IOO
1, 02 1
1,030
Taplow ....
1,762
422
592
586
647
744
704
8n
1,028
1,063
1,029
1,056
Cotttsloc Hundred
Aston Abbots J
2,198
276
267
321
303
356
343
3"
327
290
281
200
Cheddington f J •
1,429
273
301
341
375
439
508
628
745
744
654
580
Cholesbury J . .
178
122
114
132
127
124
i'3
105
109
99
95
107
Creslow . .
887
6
5
5
5
7
10
9
6
10
12
5
8 Luffitld Abbey. — The population was included in that given for Stowe Ancient Parish in 1811 and 1821. A small
part appears to be in Northamptonshire ; the entire area and population is included in Buckinghamshire.
9 Penn.— The decline in population in 1861 is attributed to the absence of woodmen temporarily present in
1851.
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
TABLE OF POPULATION, 1801—1901 (continued)
PARISH
Acre-
age
1801
1811
I82I
1831
1841
1851
1861
1871
1881
1891
1901
Cottesloe
Hundred (cont.)
Cublington J . .
1,223
271
233
259
284
290
287
288
283
259
223
215
Drayton
1,888
191
224
272
27S
23'
261
268
227
'94
177
'49
Beaucbamp f
Drayton
1,75°
307
287
372
416
526
490
468
479
473
425
369
Parslow 10 J
Dunton J . . .
'•'97
85
89
98
116
107
98
1 06
96
So
7'
82
Edlesboroush f t •
4,647
997
1,146
1,378
M90
1,722
1,838
1,671
1,814 i,598
' ,448
1,099
Grove J . . . .
437
25
33
18
21
25
38
'9
23 17
'9
'9
Hardwick t :—
3,001
563
554
627
640
747
739
708
7'7 647
596
488
Hardwick . .
1,213
178
196
207
235
319
292
283
254
214
183
767
Weedon
1,788
385
358
420
405
428
447
425
463
433
413
321
Hamlet t
Hawridge J . . .
697
121
144
208
217
233
270
276
254
242
214
209
Hoggeston J . .
1,57'
197
190
1 88
'73
204
220
207
I91
'75
1 66
129
Horwood, Great J .
3-^7'
537
581
688
720
712
834
846
866
712
639
554
Horwood, Little J .
1,948
339
325
429
43'
392
427
449
411
309
304
267
Ivinghoeft • •
5,618
1,215
1,361
1,665
',648
1,843
2,024
1,849
1,722
1,380
1,270
',077
Linslade J . . .
1,693
203
281
370
407
883
1,309
1,511
',633
',724
1,982
2,'57
Marsworth f "\
f 259
264
39'
427
472
463
T
Long Mars ton
and Asthorpe j
1,266
f-
_
12
16
}-549
564
455
385
396
Extra Par. J
I
J
Mentmore J . .
'-575
279
298
302
329
348
356
309
408
3'4
307
289
Mursleyut. . .
2,975
3.8
3'0
473
495
479
553
482
488
363
369
367
Pitstone : —
2,459
360
389
461
578
522
545
581
612
544
574
484
Nettleden
804
85
101
108
142
98
107
124
133
111
115
88
Hamlet
Pitstone 1 1 • •
1,655
275
288
353
436
424
438
457
479
433
459
396
Shenley (part
of) " :—
Brook End
1,659
232
230
224
244
264
283
289
290
219
215
1 86
Township
Slapton f t . . •
1,211
228
202
3H
36o
336
298
325
325
265
2'4
161
Soulburyl . . .
Stewkleyt • • •
4,226
3,982
526
680
§02
547
933
578
',053
615
1,262
628
',432
589
'.453
55'
',43'
475
1,36'
510
',328
550
i,'59
Swanboume J . .
2,552
529
499
616
668
679
646
603
558
474
429
405
Tattenhoe, or
647
3'
24
16
'3
'5
55
64
63
'7
45
16
Tottenhoe J
Whaddon :—
3-772
810
8n
900
889
910
987
955
936
745
704
584
Nash Hamlet .
7,247
265
263
375
377
366
439
462
460
340
306
263
Whaddon
2,525
545
548
525
512
544
548
493
476
405
398
321
Township J
Whitchurch . . .
I,7»7
646
7'4
845
928
930
9'5
884
799
725
709
619
WingJ
Wingrave with
5,703
2,488
993
602
937
588
1,086
675
1,152
783
',274
814
1,376
8'3
'IS
1,520
908
1,636
903
',799
926
1,740
827
Rowsham f t
Winslow * t . . .
1,920
1,101
1,222
1,222
1,290
',434
1,889
1,890
1,826
1,663
1,704
'-70S
Dcsborough
Hundred
I'.radenham ft- •
996
170
181
220
363
226
138
185
169
183
152
'54
Fawley J . . . .
2,213
181
189
276
254
280
254
272
289
302
266
235
Fingest ....
1,285
3'6
303
295
340
379
3»7
352
337
333
364
367
Hambleden . . .
6,598
1,074
1,110
I,28l
',357
1,241
',365
1,464
M6I
1,502
',557
",5'7
Hedsor t . . . .
548
140
162
1 88
207
194
'83
'75
225
'55
191
166
Hitchenden, or
5,828
887
989
1,247
',457
1,481
',54'
',653
>,792
1,803
',765
1,728
Hughendon
Ibstone (part of; '*
848
258
247
272
3'3
177
162
'53
140
'42
'49
116
Lewknor(partof)I4t
456
7'
63
52
61
33
24
10 Drayton Parslow. — There were 52 persons temporarily present at the 1841 Census, owing to the annual village
feast.
11 Murtliy. — The decline in population in 1861 is attributed to the absence of men temporarily present in 1851 and
engaged on railway works.
" Shenlty Anoint Parish is situated partly In Cottesloe Hundred and partly in Newport Hundred.
u Ibstatu. — The remainder is in Oxfordshire (Pirton Hundred). The entire population is shown in Buckingham-
shire 1801-31.
14 Ltwknor. — The remainder is in Oxfordshire (Lewknor Hundred), where the entire population is shown
1801-41.
99
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
TABLE OF POPULATION, 1801—1901 (continued)
PARISH
Acre-
age
1801
1811
1821
1831
1841
1851
1861
1871
1881
1891
1901
Dtsborough
Hundred (cent)
Marlow, Great t
6,245
3>236
3,965
3,763
4,237
4,480
4485
4,661
4,701
4,763
5,250
5,645
Marlow, Little f
3,328
728
730
775
783
927
894
790
964
9/6
922
939
Medmenham J .
2,442
284
323
369
384
385
401
380
310
336
320
387
Radnage \ . .
1,369
306
319
366
399
401
433
478
476
427
452
385
Saunderton * 1 1
1,831
'93
I92
2IO
231
232
380
428
411
424
373
370
Turville J . .
2,328
376
382
362
442
476
436
437
456
423
468
371
Wooburn f I •
3,133
1,401
1,604
1,831
1,927
1,830
2,026
2,245
2,343
2,431
2,727
3,328
Wycombe, Chep
6,395
4,248
4,756
5,599
6,299
6,480
7,179
8,373
10,492
13,154
16,409
19,282
ping
Wycombe, West. .
6,533
1,330
1,362
1,545
1,901
2,002
2,000
2,161
2,343
2,390
2,599
3,466
Newport Hundred
Astwood f t • • •
1,286
160
209
263
268
243
268
247
268
222
187
168
Bletchley :—
3,364
1,038
1,103
1,160
1,254
1,450
1,544
1,658
1,862
2,432
3,3ii
4,269
Bletchley . . .
2,348
824
916
884
1,011
1,183
1,303
1,416
1,619
2,184
3,070
4,068
Water Eaton
1,016
214
187
276
243
267
241
242
243
248
241
201
Township
Brad well-. . . .
917
255
259
271
257
381
381
1,658
2,409
2,460
2,899
3,946
Bradwell Abbey
447
12
10
2O
17
21
16
'4
10
28
16
18
Extra Par.
Brayfield, Cold . .
744
82
75
80
93
83
80
99
86
85
80
79
Brickhill, Bow J .
1,848
43'
392
438
475
566
59'
546
468
460
464
448
Brickhill, Great \ .
2,383
560
554
558
776
721
730
590
566
557
522
491
Brickhill, Little J .
1,367
385
409
485
5'4
563
483
423
291
241
3'2
278
Broughtont. . .
937
157
194
191
172
168
182
155
174
'59
122
H3
Calvertonf • • •
2,011
321
332
370
425
493
505
595
579
550
658
711
Castle Thorpe . .
1,372
260
242
348
366
365
346
338
366
329
441
539
Chicheley J . . .
2,O7O
189
179
219
218
256
271
265
250
181
1 80
208
Clifton Reynes \ .
i,454
221
238
230
246
213
217
212
216
203
170
122
Crawley, North f t
3>362
6l7
681
775
791
865
914
981
933
699
622
541
Emberton 15 f . .
2,364
549
541
549
598
658
613
632
637
653
526
5IO
Gayhurstf . . •
1,012
89
89
90
118
116
88
129
95
9'
91
IO4
Hanslope . . .
5,801
1,289
1,345
1,479
1,623
1,553
1,604
1,792
1,726
1,584
1,489
1,424
Hardmead ft- •
i,'45
45
68
75
83
83
61
9'
92
92
79
5'
Haversham J . .
1,634
223
256
289
313
283
280
288
262
237
224
200
Lathbury ft • •
1,394
189
177
164
172
127
147
147
136
121
152
1 88
Lavendon 16 1 • •
2,615
544
546
613
664
691
769
820
916
783
665
704
Linford, Great " J
1,836
313
376
408
420
474
486
557
468
437
481
478
Linford, Little J
727
44
40
73
55
64
57
58
58
69
70
70
Loughton J . . .
1,536
302
288
293
325
361
335
386
359
324
348
371
Milton Keynes J .
1,909
280
287
338
334
327
3'7
346
321
244
207
219
Moulsoe J . . .
1,654
282
229
260
303
297
239
234
241
194
214
190
Newton Blossom-
1,014
221
211
243
237
264
332
277
320
260
191
177
ville18!
Newton
1,735
459
486
486
473
565
595
547
537
471
415
424
Longville J
Newport
3,432
2,048
2,5'S
3,103
3,385
3,569
3,651
3,823
3,824
3,686
3,788
4,028
Pagnel * t
Olney :—
3,260
2,075
2,268
2,339
2,418
2,437
2,329
2,358
2,74i
2,430
2,467
2,740
Olney
2,359
2,003
—
2,344
2,362
2,265
2,284
2,672
2,362
2,409
2,705
Township " "
Warrington
901
72
—
—
74
75
64
74
69
68
58
33
Hamlet f
Ravenstone 1 1
1,920
381
370
418
430
415
446
400
431
370
300
224
Shenley (part
of)18" :—
Church End
1,662
232
211
225
240
227
210
203
209
184
1 80
1 66
Township
Sherington J . .
1,805
671
773
796
804
856
826
839
718
604
566
548
15 Embirton includes the area, and population 1841-1901, of Petsoe Manor, which became a separate Civil Parish
•under the Extra Parochial Places Acts.
16 Lavendon, Newton Blossomville, Weston Underwood, and Olney Township. —The increase in the population of these
places in 1871 is almost entirely due to the presence of men engaged in railway construction.
v Great Linford. — In the 1821 volume four families are said to live here in turf-huts and to be engaged in
.cultivating woad.
18 Olney Township includes the area, and the population 1851-1901, of Olney Park Farm, which became a separate
Civil Parish under the Act 20 Viet. c. 19, having been previously Extra Parochial.
isa See note 12, ante.
IOO
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY
TABLE OF POPULATION, 1801—1901 (continued)
PARISH
Acre-
age
1801
iSn
1821
1831
1841
1831
1 86:
1871
1881
1891
1901
Newport
Hundred— (coM.)
Simpson J . . .
1,366
367
372
395
470
585
540
562
678
737
727
73'
Stantonbury . .
806
39
3*
40
5'
42
27
29
40
35
29
4'
Stoke Goldington "
2,352
636
617
818
912
855
902
963
875
808
767
629
Stoke Hammond J
1,566
268
283
320
323
407
438
401
369
365
312
288
Stony Stratford-
55
893
968
969
',053
1,227
1,256
1,356
1,186
i, 216
1,100
',395
West Side, or
St. Giles " f
Stony Stratford-
69
528
520
530
566
530
501
649
790
727
859
958
East Side, or
St. Mary
Magdalen
Tyringham with
',792
236
1 80
204
227
206
1 88
226
246
199
'55
198
Filgrave J
Walton t . . .
772
79
97
1 02
114
103
95
95
105
112
93
84
Wavendon t . •
2,791
635
685
721
802
846
935
879
953
971
',384
',659
Weston Under-
1,873
357
339
420
441
438
405
398
430
352
325
275
wood ""• {
Willen t . . . .
678
97
78
83
98
97
98
80
76
86
86
9'
Woolstone, Great .
5'4
"3
116
1 08
120
94
72
7i
84
81
80
45
Woolstone, Little .
631
103
88
114
124
"5
IO2
125
117
81
83
85
Wolverton . . .
2,325
238
258
335
4'7
1,261
2,070
2,370
2,804
3,6 1 1
4,'47
5,323
Woughton-on-the-
1,224
3"
285
299
303
354
337
3'4
273
231
208
202
GreenJ
Stoke Hundred
DatchetJ . . .
1,386
357
710
839
802
922
898
982
990
1,202
1,582
',834
Denham J . . .
3,939
796
1,000
1,189
t,i69
1,264
1,062
i. 068
',234
1,254
1,242
1,146
Eton .... I
[3,526
3,666]
Eton College }
786
2,026
2,279
2,475
3,232
83
I3o
3,«22
3,261
3,984
2,955
3,666
Extra Par. J
j
Fulmer . . .
1,895
292
262
340
391
355
328
35'
412
428
349
340
Hedgerleyt. •
1,097
'37
126
158
187
161
150
153
'75
132
118
'47
Horton . . .
1,367
647
723
796
804
873
842
810
835
86 1
824
834
Iver ....
6,467
1,377
1,635
i, 661
1,870
I QJ8
i 085
2 I 14
2 2 1O
2 ^OQ
2 4?6
" fi.i, )
Langley Marish
3,937
• I J / 1
1,215
1 J J
',57'
• I*-"-* j
1,616
i*-*/ **
1,797
» iy-f vj
1,844
,yw j
1,874
*, • • *f
1,874
*1* J7
1,964
•*»jvy:/
2,162
*t*t / v
2,474
*(V^fW
3,'67
Stoke Poges" J
3,465
741
838
1,073
1,252
1,528
1,501
1, 600
1,850
2,150
2,356
3,175
Upton-cum-
',943
1,018
1,083
1,268
1,502
2,296
3,573
4,688
5,940
7,030
7,7oo
9,406
Chalvey *
Wexham t . . .
748
172
178
'54
181
'75
20 1
196
218
172
231
239
Wyrardisbury, or
1,679
616
560
520
682
672
701
735
73'
658
660
779
Wraysbury J
Ayhsbury
Borough
Aylesbury * f . .
3,302
3,186
3,447
4,400
5,021
5,429
6,08 1
6,168
6,962
7,795
8,680
9,099
Buckingham
Borough
Buckingham * . .
5,006
2,605
2,987
3^65
3,610
4,054
4,020
3,849
3,703
3,585
3,364
3,'52
GENERAL NOTE AS TO BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
The following Municipal Boroughs and Urban Districts, were, at the Census of 1901,
co-extensive with one or more places mentioned in the Table : —
Municipal Borough, or Urban District
Beaconsfield U.D.
Buckingham M.B.
Fenny Stratford U.D. .
Linslade U.D.
Newport Pagnel U.D.
Place
Beaconsfield Parish (Burnham Hundred)
Buckingham Parish (Buckingham Borough)
Bletchley Ancient Parish (all except Water Eaton Township), and
Simpson Parish (both in Newport Hundred)
Linslade Parish (Cottesloe Hundred)
Newport Pagnel Parish (Newport Hundred)
'• Stoke Goldington includes Gorefieldj, which was formerly Extra Parochial.
* Stony Stratford Witt Sidt.—The population for 1801 is an estimate. «•« See note 16, tntt.
w Stake Pogei.—Tbo population for 1801 is an estimate.
101
INDUSTRIES
INTRODUCTION
BUCKINGHAMSHIRE has never
been a manufacturing county, and
before the i6th century there were
probably no industries but those
which supplied the actual wants of
the local agricultural population. During the
last three centuries the industries carried on in
the county, though on a small scale, have been
very various. The most interesting are those
which may be called cottage industries : lace,
straw-plaiting, and chair-seating. Of these, the
two latter owe their origin to natural products
grown in the county, the wheat-straw being
suitable for plaiting, and the beech woods of the
Chiltern Hills being famous throughout the his-
tory of the county. Chair-making is now per-
haps the most important manufacture, and is still
peculiarly local in its character, although much
of the wood used is not grown in the district.
Other trades owe their prosperity to the water-
power, arising from the Thames and its tribu-
taries in the south and the Ouse in the north.
The chief of these is the manufacture of paper,
the mills being grouped for the most part on the
streams running into the Thames. In the
northern part of the county much of this water-
power was lost, owing to the construction of the
Grand Junction Canal. Other industries have
existed in the county without apparently any
dependence on natural commodities or situation.
Needle-making, for instance, was a trade carried
on for more than two centuries at Long
Crendon, where it was difficult to procure wire,
and the manufacturers did not attempt to utilize
the water that lay close at hand. Silk mills were
opened in the early i gth century with the defi-
nite object of providing work for the unem-
ployed, and more recently branches of London
printing works have been established in the
•county.
The growth of the town of Slough should be
noticed in connexion with the Buckinghamshire
industries. Originally quite a small village, it
seems to have mainly grown up since the build-
ing of the station on the Great Western Railway.
Its population is to a great extent industrial, em-
ployed in a great variety of undertakings, the
chief being perhaps the brick-fields. Until very
recent years the means of communication, how-
ever, in the county have offered no incentive to
the local industries. The roads as a whole seem
to have been uniformly bad for many centuries.
Each township or parish was responsible for the
roads which ran through it, the different land-
owners being bound to repair particular pieces.
At the close of the I3th century indulgences
were granted to encourage the repair of the roads
in the county. In 1 292, during the episcopate
of Bishop Sutton l of Lincoln, such an indulgence
was granted to those who were bound to contri-
bute to the repair of Walton Street, in Aylesbury
parish, and in the succeeding years similar indul-
gences* were granted for the repair of the bridges
at Newport Pagnell and Great Marlow. Pre-
sentments in the manorial courts of different
obstructions left on the roads were very frequent,
and it seems doubtful if the courts were of suffi-
cient authority to have much effect, the same
offence coming up in court after court.1 In the
1 6th and I7th centuries the justices of the peace
superseded the lord of the manor in this duty,
but the change seems to have had no effect. In
1634-5 the county was charged with a share of
carrying certain timber from Oxfordshire to
London. In April the justices wrote that the
roads were ' impassable, or at least so foul and
unfit for carriages of weight ' that the loads must
be very small, and therefore they begged that the
work might be done later in the summer.4 In
the 1 8th century a highway rate could be levied
on different parishes by order of the justices
under an Act of William and Mary instead of the
different inhabitants providing labourers for so
many days.*
The repairs, however, at the close of the cen-
tury were carried out mainly by gangs of parish
labourers, who were underpaid and without
supervision. The establishment of turnpike
trusts for the repair of the main roads produced
some improvement, but of course the by-roads
1 Line. Epii. Reg. Sutton Mem. ' Ibid.
' Add. MS. 27039, 27148, 27152. Instances are
frequent throughout the series of Fawley Court Rolls.
4 S.P. Dom. Cha». I, ccxv, 38.
* Quarter Sessions Rec. East. 1718.
103
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
were not affected, and the frequent collection of
tolls was often a heavy tax on the farmers of a
district. Thus at Aylesbury there was no road
out of the town free from toll, and there were
no less than seven turnpike trusts, each managing
a different road, with a different set of lawyers,
officials, and toll-collectors to be paid.6 The
tolls varied slightly under different trusts, but in
Buckinghamshire and the neighbouring counties
the usual rates were as follows : — 7
For a horse ridden or led, I \d.
For a horse drawing any vehicle, \\d.
A carriage and pair gJ. and so on.
Cattle lod. a score, and sheep and pigs rather less.
In 1813, in a survey of the county made for the
Board of Agriculture, the state of the roads is
heavily condemned. The by-roads naturally were
the worst ; some were even dangerous, the ruts
being so deep that the surveyor reports ' that when
the wheels of a chaise fall into them, it is with
the greatest danger an attempt may be made to
draw them out ; nay, instances may be produced
where, if such an attempt is made, the horse and
chaise must inevitably fall into bogs.' This
actually happened on the road from Risborough
to Bledlow, the horse of the surveyor falling
into a bog up to his chest.8 The main roads
at the present time are under the control of
the County Council. Their course has been
dictated from the earliest times by the posi-
tion of the Chiltern Hills, the roads from
London passing in the most cases through the
different gaps in the hills. The road from
London to Chester passes through before it
reaches Buckinghamshire, which it enters at
Little Brickhill, and runs north-west, covering
the course of Watling Street. The Liverpool
road enters the county near Woburn and passes
through the town of Newport Pagnell, which
owed its prosperity to its being a posting stage
on this road. In the south of the county there
are two roads to Oxford from London. The one
follows the valley of the Thames, the other
enters the county near Uxbridge and passes
through High Wycombe, going over the Chiltern
Hills. From this road a branch road runs up the
Missenden valley to Aylesbury and Buckingham,
while there is a more direct road to the former
town by Tring and Aston Clinton. Other
roads of course connect the different towns and
villages with one another. The county was
better served by water communication than by
road. The Thames was used by the manufac-
turers established near its banks, and the Ouse
is navigable throughout its course in Bucking-
hamshire. The Grand Junction Canal has also
supplied a much-needed means of communication
6 J. K. Fowler, Rec. of Old Times, 14.
7 Ibid.
for the towns in the centre of the county, which
were long without adequate railway service.
The main canal passes through Ivinghoe, Fenny
Stratford, and Stony Stratford, but is also con-
nected with the three towns of Buckingham,
Aylesbury, and Wendover. The Act of Parlia-
ment for making the cuts was obtained in 1794.
This canal was so much used in the early part of
the i gth century that the road from Stony Strat-
ford to Newport Pagnell, along which the com-
modities sent by canal were distributed in the
county, was at many seasons of the year abso-
lutely impassable, being cut up by the heavy
wagons.9 In the early days of railways the
Buckinghamshire landowners offered so much
opposition to any scheme that the county was.
badly serve^ b) railways for many years. When
the Londu.. and Birmingham Railway, now the
London and North - Western, was surveyed
George Stephenson's original plan was to bring
the main line down via Aylesbury and Amer-
sham to London, but so much opposition was
raised that the line was diverted through the
Countess of Bridgewater's land by Berkhamp-
stead and Tring. ' The land,' she is reported
to have said to him, ' is already gashed by the
Canal, and if you take that course you will have
no severance to pay, it will disarm opposition,
and the position of the locks will be some guide
to you in your levels.' lu Thus the line, when it
was opened in 1 838, only passed through a small
portion of the county by Bletchley and Wolver-
ton. Subsequently several branch lines have been
built, opening up the northern part of the county.
From Cheddington Junction there is a line to
Aylesbury ; from Bletchley there are two lines,
one by Fenny Stratford to Bedford and Cam-
bridge, and the other to Oxford. The Banbury
line passes through Buckingham, leaving the
main line at Winslow, and another branch con-
nects Wolverton and Newport Pagnell. In the
south the chief railway is the Great Western ;.
the main line, entering the county near Coin-
brook and passing through Slough, leaves the
county at Maidenhead. It has branches to-
Eton and Windsor, and to Oxford, via High
Wycombe, Princes Risborough, and Thame.
A small line was projected in 1 846 by Robert
Stephenson, its object being to connect the two
great lines, the centre of the county being then
practically without railway communications. Part
of the scheme was abandoned, and not till 1861
was the Act obtained for the Aylesbury and
Buckingham Railway. The project met with
opposition of every kind, but finally an arrange-
ment was made for the new line being worked
by the Great Western.11 Afterwards, however,
an extension was made bringing the line from.
St. John Priest, Gen. View of dgric. of Bucks. 125.
9 Ibid. 342.
10 J. K. Fowler, Recollections of Old Country Lifer
339-42-
11 J. K. Fowler, Rec. of Old Times, 186.
104
INDUSTRIES
Aylesbury to London, the terminus being at
Baker Street, and the Aylesbury and Bucking-
ham Railway was bought by the Metropolitan
Railway Company. The line is known as the
Metropolitan Extension Railway, and a steam
tramway is run in connexion with it from Quain-
ton Road to Brill. The Great Central Railway,
since its extension to London, also passes
through the centre of the county, entering it
near Buckingham. It then passes through
Quainton Road Junction, Aylesbury, and on to
the Marylebone terminus. The Great Western
and Great Central Joint Committee have built
a new line from Quainton Road, through Princes
Risborough and Wycombc, joining the main
line near Kingsbury-Neasden and so on to
London.
Several industries have sprung up in the
county for different reasons during the latter
part of the last century. Amongst these may be
classed boat-building, on the banks of the Thames.
This trade has probably occupied a large number
of the riverside population throughout the history
of the county. In 1831 there were said to be
ten boat - builders and 998 boat - makers or
menders," but the trade in its present form has
only developed recently. At Eton it dated from
the time when the boys at the college began
to row — about forty-five years ago." It is now
one of the four centres in the country for the
building of racing-boats. The industry received
a further stimulus about twenty years after
the introduction of racing by the popularity of
pleasure-boating on the river. A large number
of the boats built for this purpose are kept on
the Thames for letting on hire, the rest are sold
to purchasers in all parts of the country. Re-
cently the demand for punts has brought an
increase of trade, which had been decreasing
owing to the popularity of motoring and other
amusements.14 A large export trade was at one
time carried on by the boat-builders at Eton to
most continental countries, but this has been
stopped by the establishment of boat-building
firms in these countries ; boats are still sent to
Africa, India, Italy, Portugal, amongst other
places. One firm has also extended its business
by manufacturing oars and sculls, besides supply-
ing the London County Council with a large
number of mahogany boats for use in the Lon-
don parks. The industry now gives employ-
ment to a considerable number of men, whose
work is very various, the chief classes being
builders, varnishcrs, decorators, upholsterers and
watermen. The wages paid to first-class hands
are good, the rate of wages amongst the builders
reaching between £3 and £4 a week,
» Pof.Rft. 1 83 1, i, 34.
u From information kindly given by Mr. G. F.
Winter, Kton.
" From information kindly given by Mr. G. Raines,
Old Windsor and Wraysbury.
Although the manufacture of paper has been
one of the chief industries of Buckinghamshire
for so many years, there do not seem to have
been any large printing works established until
recently. In the second half of the 1 8th cen-
tury there was a printer at Aylesbury,1* and for
a short time, in the year 1792, the Buckingham-
ihire Herald was printed there by a man named
Norman, and at the present time there are
printers in most of the towns of the county.
The Buckinghamshire Standard \& printed at New-
port Pagnell, as well as the Newport Pagnell
Gazette. The South Bucks Standard at Wycombe,
the Buckingham Standard at Buckingham, and the
Bucks Herald at Aylesbury, are all printed in the
towns where they are published. In the last-
named town are large printing works owned by
Messrs. Hazell, Watson & Vincy, Ltd."
The firm was founded in London in 1845, but
the Aylesbury works were not opened till 1867,
when they were started as an experiment in an
old silk-mill, with the object of establishing works
in the country rather than in London. All kinds
of printing are done by the firm, who also are
book-binders, printing-ink makers, printers' roller
makers, &c. A great many institutions and clubs
have been established at Aylesbury for the em-
ployees of the firm, who are also shareholders under
different schemes, the total value of the shares
so held being between £16,000 and £17,000.
There are numerous coach and carriage builders
in all parts of the county. Their trade appears
to be of recent development, since in 1831 only
twenty-three men were so employed. The
chief centres are at Newport Pagnell, Great
Marlow, and Slough. At Slough a large export
trade is carried on and this has prevented one
firm at least from suffering from the increasing
demand for motor cars.17
Embrocation is made by two firms in the
county, the Line Romanelicum Company at
Newport Pagnell and the well-known Messrs.
Elliman & Sons, Ltd., at Slough.
Brewing was carried on in Buckinghamshire,
as in the rest of England, in nearly every village
in mediaeval times, and the industry was super-
vised as a rule by the lords of the manors or
their officials, claiming the right to hold the
assize of ale. Owing to the process then ob-
taining, no large quantities of beer or ale were
made, so that the business was carried on on a
very small scale. At High Wycombe, in the
1 6th century, there were severe orders against
those who brewed selling, or as it was then
called ' tippling,' their beer at their own houses.18
Instead it was to be sent into the town to be
'• Gibb, Hut. ef Aylesbury, 628-9.
" After Hours, published by Messrs. Hazell, Watson
& Viney, Ltd.
17 Information kindly given by Messrs. Brown &
Sons, Slough.
" Wycombe Borough Records.
105
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
sold by the ' tipplers ' at the price fixed by the
mayor of the borough. The more important
breweries, in the modern sense, seem to have
been established during the i8th century. At
Great Marlow brewing is the most important
industry in the town, the chief brewery having
been established by the Wethereds in 1758.
The same family still carries on the business,
which, however, was formed into a company in
1899. The brewery now carried on by the
Newport Pagnell Brewery Co., Ltd., has also
been established for at least a hundred years.
There were also breweries at Buckingham,
Bletchley, and Aylesbury, but these are now all
in the hands of the Aylesbury Brewery Co.,
Ltd.
The oldest nursery gardens in Buckinghamshire
are the Royal nurseries at Slough, which were
founded by Mr. Thomas Brown in 1774..™ In
1848 they passed into the hands of the late
Mr. Charles Turner, and they have remained in
his family to the present day. The nurseries
have always been noted for ' Florists' Flowers/
the chief kinds grown being carnations, picotees,
pinks, roses, auriculas, pelargoniums, dahlias, etc.
Roses grown at Slough were specially famous,
and Dean Hole described Mr. Charles Turner
as ' the king of florists.' " At the present day
the gardens cover about 150 acres of ground.
In the same neighbourhood Messrs. Veitch &
Sons, of Chelsea, have opened nurseries at
Langley Marish. In 1880, 20 acres of land were
purchased, and more has been added till the
nursery includes about sixty acres in all. The
principal culture is that of fruit trees, roses, and
herbaceous plants, but flower and vegetable seeds
are also grown there. The nursery is particu-
larly noted for its pears and apples. There are
various nurseries in different parts of the county,
which have been developed of late years and have
profited by the new lines of railway. Of these,
the nursery near Claydon was started about four-
teen years ago ' to develop a local trade for small
orders for ready money.'21 Tomatoes, bedding
plants, and chrysanthemums are grown in large
quantities, and cut flowers are also supplied.
Fruit of all kinds is grown, and some twelve
years ago a Fruit Growers' Association was
formed, so that customers living near could
obtain the best variety of fruit trees at wholesale
prices. To encourage fruit-growing amongst
the tenants of Sir Edmund Verney, bart., on
whose estate the Claydon Nurseries are situ-
ated, compensation for disturbance is given to
the cottagers and others who have purchased
fruit trees through the Association and have left
their cottages within six years after planting.
Various other branches of work have also been
undertaken, such as fruit-preserving, bee-keeping,
and wood-growing. The Claydon Nurseries
Company is co-operative so far as the horticul-
tural department is concerned, the profits being
annually divided amongst the permanent em-
ployees of that branch of the work.
LACE-MAKING
Lace-making for a very long period formed
the most important industry of Buckinghamshire.
There seems some doubt as to its origin in the
county, but tradition attributes it to Queen Ka-
therine of Aragon, who besides holding several
manors in Buckinghamshire as part of her dower,
also lived for two years at Ampthill in the neigh-
bouring county of Bedford.1 Thread-lace was
made in England as early as 1463^ and bone-lace,
the original name for pillow-lace, is mentioned
in 1577.* The type of lace made in England at
this time was Flemish, and may have been first
brought to England by refugees from Flanders.
Pennant * speaks ' of the lace-manufacture which
we stole from the Flemings,' but Queen Kather-
ine may still, in the first instance, have brought
19 From information kindly given by Mr. Charles
Turner, The Royal Nurseries, Slough.
" Memoirs of Dean Hole (1893), 207.
" From information kindly given by Mr. J. Milsom,
Claydon Nurseries.
1 L. and P. Hen. Fill, vi, 66 1.
1 Par!. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 507^.
' New Engl. Diet,
4 Journey from Chester to Land. 342.
the industry to Buckinghamshire. It seems to
have been flourishing by the beginning of the
I7th century, since in 1611 men 'who continu-
allie travelled to sell bone-lace on the Sabbath
day ' were presented at an ecclesiastical visitation.5
A time of depression, however, followed, prob-
ably owing to the monopolies granted by
James I. In High Wycombe and the neigh-
bourhood there was a great deal of distress in
1623 mainly due to lack of employment, since
both the clothing and bone-lace trades were
daily becoming more depressed.6 This depres-
sion was, however, merely temporary. Three
years later, in the neighbouring town of Great
Marlow, Sir Henry Borlase founded a school for
twenty-four boys and twenty-four girls, and
the latter were to learn to knit, spin, and make
bone-lace. The chief centres of the lace indus-
try were Newport Pagnell, or Olney, High
Wycombe, and Aylesbury. Fuller, in 1660,'
specially mentions Olney, but the industry was
already widely spread in the county. A few
6 F. W. Bull, Hist, of Newport Pagnell, 17.
6 S.P. Dom. Jns. I, cxlii, 44.
' Worthies of Engl. (NuttalFs ed.), 193.
106
INDUSTRIES
years later Sir Edmund Verncy,8 at Claydon,
writes that one of his men had given him some
very good lace made by his daughter. She re-
ceived a guinea, and the lace was made into a
cravat of the latest fashion.
The greatest time of prosperity in the indus-
try came, however, in the i8th century, when
bone-lace was in great demand. The Spectator,
when deploring the extravagance of women in
their head-dresses,' speaks of ' childish Gewgaws,
Ribbands and bone-lace.' In 1717 the lace-
makers on a large scale, living at Wycombe and
in that neighbourhood, petitioned against a de-
cision which forced them to take out licences as
petty chapmen or hawkers.10 One of the chief
of these lace-makers was Ferdinando Shrimpton
of Penn, who was eight times Mayor of Chep-
ping Wycombe.11 He and other men of his
class kept several hundred workers constantly
employed.11 They went weekly to London,
generally on a Monday, and sold their goods to
the London milliners at the lace markets held at
the George Inn, Aldersgate Street, or in the Bull
and Mouth Inn in St. Martin's by Aldersgate.
They returned with a stock of thread and silk,
which they gave out to their workwomen to be
made up according to their orders.13 In the
northern part of the county Newport Pagnell
was a sort of staple town for bone-lace,14 and it
was said to produce more lace than any other
town in the country.18 A lace-market was held
every Wednesday at which great quantities were
sold. Lace-buyers also came round from the
London houses about once a month, meeting the
lace-makers at some inn, such as the ' Nagg's
Head ' at Thame, and there buying their stock.18
The Anti-Gallican Society some years before
had awarded its first prize for lace shown by
Mr. William Marriott, of Newport Pagnell,17
and in 1761 Earl Temple, the Lord Lieutenant
of Buckinghamshire, presented the king, on
behalf of the lace-makers, with a pair of fine
lace ruffles, made at the same town.18
Aylesbury was also noted for the fine quality
of the lace made there.1* In the i8th century
the women in the workhouse were employed in
lace-making instead of spinning.*0 In 1784 the
overseers entered two cloths for lace-pillows in
their accounts ; " in the same year they paid \d.
' Memoirs of tht ferney Family, iv, 2 1 3.
' The Spectator, no. 98.
" Treasury Papers, ccviii, 47.
" Langley, Hist, of the Hun,/, of Deshorough.
" Treainry Papers, ccviii, 47.
11 Pinnock, Hist, and Topog. of Engl. i, 3 1 .
" Defoe, Tour through Great Britain (1778), ii, 173.
11 Bull, Hilt, of Newport Pagnell, 17.
" W. Shrimpton, Notes on a decayed Needle-land, 25.
" Mrs. Bury Palliscr, Hist, of Lace (1902), 380.
" Ibid.
" Defoe, Tour through Great Britain (1778), ii, 173.
10 Aylesbury Overseers' Accounts. " Ibid.
to ' four girls cutting off,' and on another occasion
Mary Slade received 31. yd. to set up lace-
making.** Lace played a prominent part also
in the Parliamentary elections for the borough.13
No candidate could hope to be successful if he
did not promise to uphold the bone-lace in-
dustry and denounce the machine-made lace of
Nottingham. A lace-pillow was mounted on a
pole and carried at the head of processions, and
banners were hung with Aylesbury lace, for
which enormous prices were paid.
The lace trade flourished in the early part of the
1 9th century, and its extent is well illustrated by
the village of Hanslope.** In 1801, 500 people
out of a population of 1,275 were employed in
lace-making, and both men and women made it
their regular employment. No women's labour
for agricultural work could be obtained in the
county ** owing to the good wages they were
paid for lace-making.
The decline came very quickly after the close
of the French wars. The introduction of
machine-made lace about 1835 ** and the effects
of free trade gradually killed the industry." The
quality of the lace made fell off, and in spite of
temporary revivals the trade proper became ex-
tinct about I884.*8 The industry, however,
lingered on in many parts of the county, and of
late years a great effort has been made to bring
about a revival. The North Bucks Lace
Association was formed in 1897, and is the
largest association of the kind. It aims not only
at reviving old patterns and improving the quality
of the lace made, but also at securing a better
price than the workers can obtain for themselves.
In other parts of the county various people have
interested themselves in the industry, and very
beautiful lace is now made, such as the lace in
Hughenden Church.
In the south of the county other trades,
especially chair-making, afford both an easier and
at the same time a better paid occupation for
the women, so that there is less lace-making than
round Buckingham and Newport Pagnell.
Another difficulty in the way of the revival of
the industry is the length of time taken in learn-
ing to make lace. It seems probable that after
the present generation of workers has passed
away no fine, wide lace will be made any more
with the object of earning a livelihood. Chil-
dren, in order to become expert workers, must
begin very young and work more hours a day
than is possible whilst they are attending school.
In the flourishing days of the industry there
were hardly any schools except lace-schools in
" Ibid. " Gibbs, Hut. of Ajksburj, 62 I .
** Lysons, Magna Brit, i, 482.
" St. John Prie»t, Gen. Clew of Agric. of Burks.
346.
" Bull, Hist, of Newport Pagnell, 196.
" Palliser, Hist, of Lace (1902), 393.
" Bull, Hist, of Newport Pagnell, 196.
107
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
the county. Sir William Borlase's school at
Great Marlow was not continued long, but in
1672 the Aylesbury overseers paid Mary Sutton
5*. to teach the workhouse children to make
lace.29 At Hanslope children were sent to the
lace-schools when they were five years old,30 and
both boys and girls could maintain themselves by
the time they were eleven or twelve. The hours
were very long, and schools were held in small
cottages without sufficient light or ventilation.
In some parts of the county the children were
sent to the lace-schools at four years old. The
old woman who kept the principal lace school at
Lane End died about a year ago at the age of
eighty-six. The schools must have disappeared
about thirty to thirty-five years ago, but the
children then seem to have had first about an
hour's reading lesson, followed by six to seven
hours' lace-making.31 Besides the children, the
skilled workers were crowded in large numbers
into a small room, with the result that the in-
dustry was most unhealthy. As early as ijSz31
Pennant noticed the pale faces of the girls at
Newport Pagnell, due to their sedentary trade,
and three years later a writer in the Gentleman's
Magazine 33 suggested remedies for. this state of
things. In the course of a journey in Bucking-
hamshire and Northamptonshire his attention
was drawn to ' the frequent sight of deformed and
diseased women in these counties.' He found
they were mostly lace-makers, growing deformed
and ill from the stooping position in which they
worked and from sitting in ' small, low and close '
rooms. His recommendations probably had no
effect, and in 1797 lace-making in the towns of
the hundred of Desborough did not ' induce
those habits of neatness and industry which
appear highly necessary to render an occupation
beneficial to a county." 34
The kind of lace made in Buckinghamshire
has passed through many variations, but it has
always been pillow-lace of one kind or another,
the most characteristic lace being pillow-point, or
' half-stitch ' as it is called in the county.38 The
earliest Buckinghamshire lace was old Flemish
with a wavy and graceful pattern and well-
executed ground. Some of the patterns seem to
have been worked in with a needle on the net
ground. In 1778 point-ground was introduced,
and from that time the staple pillow-lace of the
county developed. Much of the point-ground
was made by men. The principal branch of the
89 Aylesbury Overseers' Accounts, quoted in Gibbs,
Hist, of Aylesbury, 6 1 7.
30 Lysons, Magna Brit, i, 482.
" Information kindly given by Miss E. Johnson,
Lane End, nr. High Wycombe.
ij 'Journey from Chester to Land. 342.
33 Vol. Iv, 938.
" Thomas Langley, Hist, of Hund. of Desborough,
10.
36 Palliser, Hist. of Lace (1902), 384.
trade was ' baby lace ' and edgings, mostly used
in trimming babies' caps.36 Point-ground was
used, while the patterns were copied from Lille
or Mechlin lace.37 Large quantities were ex-
ported to the United States until the outbreak of
the Civil War, when the demand ceased rapidly.38
Other sorts of grounds were made, such as
'wire,' 'double,' and ' trolly.'38 Fresh kinds of
lace were introduced at the outbreak of the
French War at the close of the i8th century.
Manufacturers undertook to supply French laces,
and both true Valenciennes lace and ' French
ground' were then made in Buckinghamshire.40
Early in the igth century Regency Point came
into fashion, a point lace with cloth or toile
on the edge. Insertions were also introduced,
and made in large quantities. A lace made of
worsted of various colours, called Norman lace,
suddenly became fashionable, 41 and the demand
was great, especially in the United States. The
trade dropped, however, as suddenly as it had
arisen. In the middle of the igth century
Maltese lace was introduced, resulting in a great
recovery in the industry.42 It was made both
of thread and silk,43 and completely ousted the
older Buckinghamshire lace, which could no
longer compete with the machine-made article.
At the Exhibition of 1862 hardly anything but
Maltese lace was exhibited, but a fresh impulse
was given to the trade.44 New kinds of Maltese
lace were introduced called ' plaited laces,' but
this revival of lace-making came to an end
about 1870, the quality of the lace having be-
come worse and worse, both as to pattern and
material.4* The last variety of lace appeared
about 1875, and was called Yac lace. It was
made from a species of goat's hair dyed to all
colours, but the fashion died out very quickly.46
Maltese lace-making lingered on in the
different villages, and is still made, but the
North Bucks Lace Association and kindred
societies encourage the older and more charac-
teristic ' Buckinghamshire lace.' Old stores of
lace have been sought out and the patterns
revived. A good deal of jealousy used to exist
with regard to the copying of patterns, and the
same feeling has again appeared of late years.
The pattern is pricked on a strip of parchment
and pinned down to the pillow. It is about ten
inches long,47 and in Buckinghamshire the custom
36 Defoe, Complete English Tradesman (1738), ii,
347-
" Palliser, Hist, of Lace, 385.
88 Ibid. 386. " Ibid. 387.
40 Ibid. 388.
41 Bull, Hist, of Newport Pagnell, 1 96.
41 Ibid.
43 Palliser, Hist, of Lace (1902), 392.
44 Gibbs, Hist, of Aylesbury, 622.
45 Palliser, Hist, of Lace (1902), 392.
46 Bull, Hist, of Newport Pagnell, 196.
47 Palliser, Hist, of Lace (1902), 391.
1 08
INDUSTRIES
is to have two of these strips, and as one is
finished the other is placed below it, the lace-
maker thus working round and round the pil-
low. The lace is made of linen thread, and at
the present day there is considerable difficulty
in procuring it fine enough and even enough.4*
This was probably a difficulty in earlier times,
and silk was used many years before Maltese lace
was introduced.4* Amersham and Great Marlow
were specially noted for the black silk lace made
there.*0 The bobbins were originally made of
bone — hence the name bone-lace ; but more
frequently they are of wood.11 The number
used varies according to the design, but for a
wide pattern as many as 500 may be needed.
Old bobbins often show an interesting history
of their owner, since it was the custom to
inscribe them with names and the dates of
various events occurring in her life. Forty
years ago it was still the custom to give bobbins,
often of intricate workmanship, as love-tokens."
The pillow was, however, the costliest part of a
lace-maker's implements. It is a hard round
cushion, stuffed with straw and well-hammered
to make it hard, and covered with ' pillow-cloth.' w
The making of pillows was almost a monopoly,
one family making them for a district.*4 A
pillow with all its appurtenances in some cases
cost as much as ^5 in the early part of the
igth century. In the prosperous days of the
industry women could earn very good wages,
often making more than their husbands, who
were agricultural labourers. In 1794 the
average wages of the best lace hands were from
ii. to u. 6d. a day,'* but about the same time
in the Thames Valley women only earned lod.
a day and girls about \d. and 6d.M In 1813
the wages given were rather lower, <)d. to is.
a day, but good workers at Aylesbury, before
machine-made lace killed the trade, could earn
25J.18 a week, and married women who did not
give their whole time to the work often made
as much as £i a week. The workers were
sometimes, however, only paid once a month,
after the lace-buyers had come round and the
local lace-men had sold their store of lace.**
At the present day the lace-makers are paid
by the hour, and the wages are not high, vary-
ing from i^d. to i^d. per hour.*0
Many old customs existed amongst the lace-
makers. St. Catherine was their patron saint,
and her festival was kept as a holiday till
recent years.*1 The Aylesbury Overseers*'
even gave the lace-makers in the workhouse
' 3». to keep Catern,' and special Catern cakes
were made to celebrate the holiday.
At Aylesbury a lace-queen was chosen from
among the lace-makers and carried round the
town on a platform, working on her pillow, and
accompanied by a band and a great crowd.**
Whether these processions were held on St.
Catherine's Day is not clear, but more prob-
ably they took place during fairs, since the
time of year commanded indoor celebrations of
the lace-makers' holiday rather than street pro-
cessions.
In some parts of the county the women, who
have lost their employment owing to the decline
of the lace trade, have taken to sequin and bead
work. This is the case round Princes Ris-
borough, particularly at Lacey Green, Amer-
sham, and near High Wycombe.64 At Lacey
Green bead-work has been done about twenty-
five years, and was sent to London, but the
demand is lessening, and only an occasional
order is now received.
WOODEN WARE AND CHAIR-MAKING
The beechwoods of the Chiltcrn districts
have naturally led to the manufacture of wooden
ware for many years. Presumably the 1 3th-
century names, Hubert Turnator, Peter le
Turnur, and Bartholomew le Turnur, specify
the trade carried on by their bearers, a trade
which afterwards obtained a considerable im-
u Pamphltt of the North Bucks. Lace Aisoc. 7.
* Aylesbury, Overseers' Accounts, 1 787.
** Pinnock, Hist, and Topog. of Engl. i, 25, 52.
" Pamphlet of the North Bucks. Lace Assot. 9.
"Ibid.
" Palli«er, Hist, of Lace (1902), 391.
M Gibbs, Hist, ofAylesbury, 617.
" W. James and J. Malcolm, Gen. View of Agric.
•fBucki.
14 Arthur Young, Six Months' Tour, iii, 356.
" St. John Priest, Gen. Yievi of Agric. in Bucks.
3|6.
portance, and was and is specially centred at
Chesham.1 In 1725 Defoe1 mentions the
supply of beechwood which was then used for
making felloes for ' the great cars of London,
cole-carts, dust-carts, &c., which the city laws
do not allow to have tyres of iron,' for the
billet wood for the king's palaces and similar
purposes, and lastly for chairs and turnery ware.
*• Gibbs, Hist, of Aylesbury, 621.
** Shrimpton, Notes on a Decayed Needle-land.
M Information kindly given by Miss E. Johnson.
* M em. of the Perney Family, i, 1 1 .
" Overseen' Accts. 1 797.
0 Gibbs, Hist, of Aylesbury, 621.
64 From information kindly given by Mrs. Robson,
Lacey Green Vicarage, and Miss Tighe, Looseley
House, Princes Risborough.
1 llund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, «, 35, 36.
' Tour in Gt. Brit. (1725), ii, 7*.
109
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
At the close of the i8th century the value of
the woods had considerably increased, frequent
felling having been found more advantageous to
the owners than allowing the trees to come to a
considerable size.3 Even then, however, the
wisdom of carrying this new system too far was
doubted. The uses to which the wood was put
were much the same as in Defoe's time — spokes,
felloes, bedsteads, and chairs.4 Chesham be-
came noted for its turnery ware early in the
following century, but in 1862 its wooden ware
and turnery trade was declining.' There are,
however, a considerable number of manufac-
turers still carrying on the trade in the town
and neighbourhood, wooden dairy utensils being
a speciality of some makers. Several firms also
make brushes of various kinds. Chair-making,
though possibly of later development than the
wooden-ware manufactory, has outstepped it in
importance. Both Defoe and Langley mention
chair-making as one of the uses to which the
beechwoods on the Chilterns were put, but the
industry does not seem to have become of great
importance until the igth century.6 In 1830
there were said to be only two chair manu-
facturers in High Wycombe,7 which has since
become the centre of the industry. In 1862
one of the chief manufacturers of the town
described the early condition of the business in
the following words8: — 'When I began the
trade ... I loaded a cart and travelled to
Luton. All there was prosperous. There was
a scramble for my chairs ; when I came home
I laid my receipts on my table, and said to my
wife : " You never saw so much money before." '
The demand for chairs grew rapidly, and the
Wycombe chair-makers supplied the chairs for
the Crystal Palace, for St. Paul's Cathedral, and
many barracks,9 and a large export trade, espe-
cially to the Colonies, was developed in the
middle of the igth century.10 It was then the
boast of Wycombe that it turned out a chair a
minute all the year round, or 1,800 doz. per
week,11 that is, over 1,100,000 per annum.
In 1885 there were about fifty chair-makers,
large and small, in Wycombe,12 and at the present
day the number has reached nearly a hundred.
The trade has, however, suffered a depression of
late years, owing to the loss of some of the
foreign trade, which has passed into American
s Langley, Hist, of the Hund. of Desborough, 9.
4 Ibid.
6 Pinnock, Hist, and Topog. of Engl. i, 24 ; Lips-
comb, Hist, of Bucks, iii, 263 ; Sheahan, Topog. of
Bucks. 838.
6 Tour in Gt. Brit, ii, 72 ; Hist, of Hund. of
Desborough, 9.
' Factory and Workshops Rep. xv, 185.
8 Sheahan, Topog. of Bucks. 220.
Ibid.
Ibid.
11 Factory and Workshops Rep. xv, 185.
» Ibid.
and Austrian hands, and the competition at home
is so severe that some of the work done is unre-
munerative.13 Nevertheless nearly every village
round Wycombe has its manufactory, employing
both men and women, boys and girls.14
The falls of timber take place in November
and March, when the trees are sold by auction,
and the manufacturers lay in their stock of wood.16
Beech wood forms the greater part of the raw
material, but elm is used for the seats, and ash
for the bows of Windsor and similar chairs.
Oak and walnut are only as a rule procured for
special orders.16
The manufacturers in 1885 were divided
into three classes, which still obtain at the present
day. In the first place there are those who have
their own steam saw-mills, and turn out the
finished article ; then come manufacturers who
send their wood to public saw-mills to be cut up
into lengths, and afterwards turn out the chair
complete ; and lastly, there are smaller men
who live in the surrounding villages and supply
the manufacturer proper with what is called
' turned stuff,' i.e., with fore-legs, stretchers,
and lists of chairs according to pattern. Thus
it often happens that only the backs, hind-legs,
and seats are made at the factory proper, other
parts being sent in from the country. There
much of the work is done in the cottages, the
wood being turned by hand, after it has come,
cut up in lengths, from the saw-mill.
Certain factories in High Wycombe specialize
in a particular part of the chair, and turn out
nothing but chair-backs, or seats. The seats are
made by women and girls, who learn the trade
at an early age. When the work is done at
home, they can earn about ijrf. an hour for
caning, and rather more for ' matting,' a dirtier
and harder process.17 The greater number of
chairs made in this district are, however, seated
with cane, not rushes, and the splitting is all
done by hand. All kinds of chairs are made,
from the common kinds known as Windsor,
cathedral, bedroom, kitchen, barrack chairs, to
the more elaborate patterns made by the larger
manufacturers of High Wycombe. The oak
chairs, for instance, made for the judges at the
Royal Courts of Justice were manufactured at
Wycombe, and, more recently, the mahogany
chairs used by the peers and peeresses at the
coronation of King Edward VII.18
Besides the actual chair-makers there are
several firms who make articles used in the manu-
facture, such as varnish and chair-makers' tools.
13 Ibid.
14 Information given by Miss E. Johnson, Lane
End.
15 Factory and Workshops Rep. xv, 185.
" Ibid.
17 Information given by Miss Johnson, Lane End.
18 Copies or examples shown at an exhibition held
at Aylesbury, July 1905.
IIO
INDUSTRIES
PAPER-MAKING
Various causes have made paper-making a
profitable undertaking in Buckinghamshire. Espe-
cially in the Thames Valley, the water-power ob-
tained from the tributaries of the river, the easy
means of communication by water, and the nearness
to London, all favoured its manufacture, and at the
close of the reign of Elizabeth paper-mills had
already been established. John Spilman, the
queen's jeweller, obtained a licence that he himself,
or his deputies, should alone build any paper-mills
or collect linen rags in the country,1 but by
1600 other mills had been erected, and he peti-
tioned for assistance against the paper manufac-
turers. John Turner, Edward Marshall, and
George Friend, had built a mill in Buckingham-
shire, but its exact position is not mentioned in
Spilman's petition. Other mills must have been
built very quickly in spite of his licence. In
1636 there were twelve paper-mills in the
county,1 one of the most important being at
Horton, worked by Edmund Phipps. He waschief
constable of the county, and seems to have worked
his mill with but little consideration for the conve-
nience of his neighbours. In fact the paper-mills
seem to have been thoroughly unpopular in the
country, owing to the importation of rags, and the
consequent outbreaks of the plague. Phipps was
presented at an ecclesiastical court in 1635 for
working his mill on Sunday all through the
year.1 The next year the mills were stopped
owing to the prevalence of the plague, and the
paper-masters petitioned for a contribution from
the county towards their relief. This made
them even more unpopular than before, and the
justices of the peace made a counter petition,
not only against the rate, but for the destruction
of the mills altogether. Some of these mills
were already built at High Wycombe,4 or near
the town, and this district became the centre of
the paper-making industry in Buckinghamshire.
At Horton, Richard West had succeeded Phipps
as paper-maker by 1649.'
At the close of the I7th century* a bill was
brought into Parliament for the formation of a
company with the monopoly of making white
writing and printing paper. Whilst it was
before the House of Lords, the mayor, alder-
men and inhabitants of Chopping Wycombe
petitioned against the formation of such a com-
pany, which would ruin their trade. There
were then, in 1690, eight paper-mills at High
Wycombe ; probably they were not all within
1 S.P. Dom. Eliz. cclxxvi, 6.
' Ibid. Chas. I, cccxliv, 40.
1 Ibid, ccxcvi, 17.
4 Ibid, ccccviii, 148.
• Gyll, Hitt. ofWrajtburj, 98.
* Hitt. MSS. Com. Rep. xiii, App. pt. v, 74.
the borough itself, but were in the neighbour-
hood, and fifty families were employed in
making paper. The men had mostly been
apprenticed to the trade, and if the prohibition
against making white paper became law, they
would come, for the most part, with their
families on the rates. The Wycombe mills
were worked by water from the River Wye,
but other mills were established on the Loddon,
which runs into the Thames between Wycombe
and Great Marlow.7
In the 1 8th century paper-making was the
most important industry in the county, with
the possible exception of lace.8 In 1797 Thomas
Langley wrote : — 'The paper manufacture is very
flourishing and has experienced every attention
its importance so highly deserves.' * The paper-
mills at Horton and Wyrardisbury (Wraysbury)
were worked during the greater part of the i8th
century, but for a time were converted into iron
or copper mills.10 Wyrardisbury mills were
re-converted into paper-mills early in the igth
century,11 while in the northern part of the
county the manufacture was carried on at
Newport Pagnell and at Marsworth,1* and
other mills may have existed on the northern
streams. The Marsworth mill was destroyed
by the construction of the grand Junction
Canal, which took away all the water of the
stream, for the reservoirs and canal. In 1831
there were seventy-six paper manufacturers in
the county, while 220 men or boys were em-
ployed in the trade either as masters or work-
men.18 Since then a mill at Chenies stopped
working between 1851 and i86i,u and at the
present day the chief paper-mills are in the
south of the county, the most important being
at High Wycombe, Great Marlow, Wooburn,
Iver, and Bledlow.
The first paper made in Buckinghamshire
was writing and printing paper of good quality,11
but in 1636-7 complaints were made that the
paper would not bear ink on either side, while
the price had risen considerably.1* So little com-
petition was there, that Phipps and his fellow
manufacturers seem to have made a great profit
on the manufacture of bad paper, while a few
' Defoe, Tour in Gt. Brit. (17*5), ii, 70.
• W. James and J. Malcolm, Gen. Vino ofJgrit. In
Bucks. (1794).
•T. Langley, Hilt. ofHunJ. ofDesbonugh, 9.
"Gyll, Hitt. of Wraysbury, 71, 198.
11 Lipscomb, Hist, tf Bucks, iv, 620.
" Pinnock, Hist. anJ Tofog. ofEngl. i, 3 1 . Informa-
tion supplied by Rev. W. Ragg.
"Pop. Ret. 1831, i, 34.
"Ibid. 1861, i, 298.
" S.P. Dom. Eliz. ccclixvi, 6.
"Ibid. Chai. I, cccxliv, 40 (i).
Ill
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
years before they had stopped their mills by
combination to bring down the price of rags.
The Wycombe mill-owners claimed to make
the best kinds of white writing and printing
paper. The price varied from 3*. to 2os. a
ream, and the Paper Act of 1690 aimed at
preventing their making it over 4.1. a ream.17
Some makers did make this good paper, but the
greater part was probably of a cheaper kind, since
in mentioning the paper-mills near Wycombe
and Marlow in 1725, Defoe18 said that printing
paper was made ' good of its kind and cheap such
as generally is made use of in printing our news-
papers, journals, &c., and smaller pamphlets,
but not much fine or large for bound books or
writing.' During the i8th century, however,
many improvements were made in the manufac-
ture. These were due largely to the efforts of
Mr. John Bates, a paper-maker at Wycombe
Marsh. His chief discovery was a method of pro-
ducing paper for mezzotints and other engraved
plates, which was equal to the French paper for
the same purpose, and for this he received the
gold medal of the Society of Arts in lySy.18
Besides the invention of this special paper,
other manufacturers at the close of the i8th
century were making only papers dt luxe. The
Rye Mill at High Wycombe, for instance,
which has been in existence for certainly a hun-
dred years and probably for longer, has always
produced paper of this class for writing, drawing,
ledgers, and bank notes.20
TANNING AND SHOEMAKING
Several tan-yards used to exist in the county,
but they are now closed and there is only
one firm of tanners in Buckingham at the
present day. So important were the tan-yards
of the town of Buckingham that the tanners
formed one of the four companies to which all
the burgesses of the borough belonged.1 In
1831, 2 131 men were employed in the business
there, but no other tanneries are mentioned.
At Olney, however, the tan-yards must have
been working at that time,8 and it was noted
for the excellence of its leather in all parts of
the kingdom. Leather tanning seems to have
been given up some thirty years ago, when the
tan-yard, worked by Mr. Joseph Palmer for oak-
bark tanning, was closed. His yard, however,
has been purchased within the last few years by
Messrs. W. E. & J. Pebody, Ltd., and the works
re-constructed, being old-fashioned and disused
for many years. The process of chrome tanning
is now carried on by the firm at the Olney
yard.
The manufacture of boots and shoes, which has
developed at Olney during the last twenty years,
was not established till after the tan-yard was
closed, so that its growth can have no connexion
with the tannery.
Boot and shoe-making is also the most im-
portant trade of the town of Chesham. One of
17 Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. xiii, App. pt. v, 74.
18 Defoe, Tour in Gt. Brit. (1725), ii, 70, 71.
19 Robert Gibbs, Worthies of Bucks. 30 ; T. Lang-
ley, Hist. ofHund. ofDesbonugh.
80 Information supplied by Messrs. T. H. Saunders
& Co. Ltd., Rye Mill, High Wycombe.
1 Brown Willis, Hut. and Antiq. of the Town, etc.
of Buckingham.
1 Pop. Ret. 1831, i, 35.
3 From information kindly given by Messrs. W. E.
& J. Pebody, Ltd. Cowper Tannery, Olney.
the chief manufacturers at the present time states
that there has been an industry there for many
generations, and that it was probably due to the
existence of several tan-yards in the town.
These latter have been given up a very long
time, owing doubtless to the later mode of pro-
ducing leather by much larger firms in London
and other leather centres, and to the large quan-
tity of leather imported. In the i6th century
the shoemakers at High Wycombe succeeded in
closing the market to ' foreign ' shoemakers,4 but
at the close of the reign of Elizabeth a new
order was made by the mayor and bailiffs, in
which the restriction against showing goods in
the market was specially removed from the
victualling and shoemaking trades. There is,
however, no mention of any particular locality
in which shoes were made in any quantity.
Early in the igth century a great many
hands were employed at Chesham in the shoe-
making trade, the goods manufactured being
sent in the main to the London market.* It is
curious, however, that shoemaking does not ap-
pear among the handicrafts or manufactures of
the county in the census of 1831.' A few years,
later the trade was flourishing,7 and by 1862
it had assumed very considerable proportions,
the goods being both sent to London and ex-
ported to foreign countries.8 For many years
all the boots and shoes were made by hand
throughout, and the work was done in the homes
of the workers. This is still the case to the
extent that hand-work is produced, but
there are few, if any, young ' hand sewn ' men
in the town. When boots began to be riveted>
* Wycombe Borough Records.
4 Lysons, Magna Brit, i, 536.
'Pop. Ret. 1831,!, 34.
7 Lipscomb, Hist, of Such, iii, 263.
8 Sheahan, Hist, and Topog. of Bucks. 838.
112
INDUSTRIES
a number of these men took to that branch of
the trade, and the term shoemaker is no longer
used, except among the hand-makers, for several
hands contribute now in the making of a pair of
boots — the riveters, sewers, and finishers and
several others all carrying on a specialized part
of the work. At one or two factories the
welting machine has been introduced and then
discarded as not satisfactory for the somewhat
stronger classes of boots for which Chesham has
become noted. For many years these classes of
boots formed the staple of the Chesham factories,
and to a large extent this is still the case. The
boots, when finished, are sent all over the country
and a considerable quantity of them are exported.
The conditions of the trade at the present time
are said to be good. 'The families engaged in
the boot trade here are very well paid and gene-
rally occupy good class cottages of the better
order ; a strike is scarcely ever heard of ...
employers and employed appear to get on very
well together. There is no trade union here,
from time to time efforts have been made from
outside to establish one. There is sufficient
demand for labour that an unreasonable employer
would find his men leave him.' '
STRAW-PLAITING
A second home industry, which still employs
a certain number of people in Buckinghamshire,
is the manufacture of straw-plait for hats and
bonnets. The manufacture first became import-
ant in Italy, Leghorn hats being still famous,
but it does not seem to have been introduced
into England until the i8th century, when the
French War stopped the importation of foreign
plait. The industry spread quickly in Bedford-
shire, Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire, where
the wheat-straw produced was the most favour-
able for English plait. In 1768 when Arthur
Young visited Dunstable,1 the manufacture of
straw-plait was established, but had not grown
to much importance, basket-work being still the
chief industry of the neighbourhood. Probably
in the neighbouring county of Buckingham
there was then no straw-plaiting, but by the end
of the 1 8th century it had spread all over the
county.
In 1813 lace and straw-plaiting were the
chief industries* of the county, occupying so
many women and girls that none of them
worked in the fields.
When foreign plait was unprocurable, the Eng-
lish article was much used, but the large size
of the wheat-straws used made it very inferior to
the Italian plait.1 To overcome this defect the
straws were split and the narrow ' splints ' used
instead of the whole straw. At first this process
was done by hand with a pen-knife, but it was
tedious and difficult to obtain uniformity in the
size of the splints. A straw-splitting machine was
then introduced, which greatly added to the suc-
cess of the industry. It is not certain who was
the original inventor, several stories existing as
to the first machine made. One of these, how-
ever, claims that the honour belongs to a Bucking-
' Information given by Messrs. J. & E. Reynolds.
1 Si* Months' Tour, i, 1 6.
' St. John Priest, Agr'u. Surv. of Bucks. 346.
1 Penny Cyclopaedia xziii.
2 113
hamshire man. In an account of straw-plaiting
written in 1822, the following story is given4 : —
Our informant states that his father, Thomas Sim-
mons (now deceased), was residing when a boy, about
the year 1785, at Chalfont St. Peter's, Buckinghamshire,
and that when amusing himself one evening by cutting
pieces of wood, he made an article upon which he put
a straw and found that it divided it into several pieces.
A female who was present asked him to give it to her,
observing that if he could not make money of it, she
could. She had the instrument, and gave the boy a
shilling. He was subsequently apprenticed to a black-
smith ; and on visiting his friends, he found them
engaged in splitting straws with a pen-knife. Per-
ceiving that the operation might be better performed
by an apparatus similar to that which he had made
some time before, he then made some machines of
iron on the same principle.
The straw-splitting machine does not seem to
have come into general use until about 1815.
The most successful period of the manufacture
was during the French War, when foreign plaits
were prohibited. The latter were in many ways
superior to English plait, but various efforts were
made to improve its quality, especially by the
Society of Arts.* These efforts maintained the
industry for a considerable period and it was in a
flourishing condition in the middle of the iQth
century. Lipscomb, writing at that time,* says
that at Broughton ' the female population were
chiefly employed, formerly in lace-making but
more recently in platting straw or chip hats and
bonnets ' and at High Wycombc lace-making had
been almost entirely superseded by straw and chip
plaiting.7
Very good wages, for the time, were earned at
the trade. In 1813 women were able to earn
3<3J. a week,8 but this was probably the highest
4 Ibid. 109. 'Johnson, Universal Cyclopaedia.
* Hist, of Bucks, iv, 77. ' Ibid, iii, 644.
•St.
346.
John Priest, Gen. View of Agric. of Bucks.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
rate obtainable, and in the Aylesbury district 22s.
a week were the best wages obtained while the in-
dustry was most successful.8 Ivinghoe and Ayles-
bury were the chief centres of the manufacture
in Buckinghamshire. At the former, the Satur-
day market was largely for straw-plait, which was
still brought to it in considerable quantities in
i862.10 At Aylesbury a plait-market was estab-
lished by Mr. Robert Thorpe in 1846 n and suc-
ceeded for a time, but was finally given up owing
to the drop in prices that shortly occurred. In
1862 the following places carried on the industry
in the county, Bow Brickhill, Great Brickhill,
Little Brickhill, Wavendon, Aston Abbots,
Drayton Parslow, Hoggeston, Pitstone, Stewkley,
Swanbourne,Whitchurch, Amersham, besides the
Ivinghoe and Aylesbury districts.13 The industry
had many different kinds of workers, with a great
deal of specialization ; there were bleachers,
cutters, dyers, flatters, stringers, drawers, and
packers each doing their own particular work in
making the straw-plait.13
Although the end of the French War made
straw-plaiting less profitable in England than it
had been before, it was not till the removal of the
import duties on foreign plait, that the real decay
of the industry set in. Buckinghamshire seems to
have lost the greater part of its trade in this article
sooner than the other straw-plaiting counties,14
but it is still carried on about Ivinghoe and Ed-
lesborough.15 A rough estimate fixes 500 to
600 as the number of straw-plaiters in Bucking-
hamshire, but the industry is still declining, the
demand being very small. The workers, too,
prefer factory or domestic service, for both of
which there is a great demand.
BRICKS, TILES AND POTTERY
In a county possessing but little stone for build-
ing, the manufacture of bricks was one of the
most important industries. In the rates of wages
fixed by the justices of the peace in I562,1 only
five kinds of artificers are especially mentioned,
namely, master carpenters and sawyers, brick-
layers, tilers and thatchers. Bricklayers and tilers
were to receive 8d. a day in summer and 6d. in
winter, and their labourers dd. and 5^.
respectively, though in fact they received much
more.
In the I yth century,8 Sir Ralph Verney
started a considerable amount of building, and in
his correspondence with his steward there are
many details about the brick-fields at Claydon.
In 1 656 he paid the brick-maker 6s. a thousand for
making and burning bricks, I s. a quarter for burn-
ing lime, and 51. a hundred for making and burning
pavements. The year before he had procured
brick pavements from the neighbouring villages.
They were 9 in. square and there was some
difficulty in the carting of them to Claydon.
The steward wrote that if Sir Ralph ' take soe
great a quantity, as from 12 or 15 hundred to-
gether .... 6 oxen would not well draw 500
at a loade, for they are not near twice so heavy
as brick and an ordinary cart will bring on 5 or 6
hundred of brick at a loade now that wages are
good.' The building had to be stopped very soon
"Gibbs, Hiit. of Aylesbury, 667.
10 Sheahan, Topog. of Bucks. 694.
11 Gibbs, Hist, of Aylesbury, 667.
11 Sheahan, Topog. of Bucks.
"Gibbs, Hist, of Aylesbury, 667.
"V.C.H.Beds. ii, 121.
15 Information kindly supplied by Mr. William Gray,
plait merchant, Edlesborough.
1 S.P. Dom. Eliz. xix, 43.
* Memoirs of the Verney family, iii, 132.
after this owing to financial straits of the Verneys
after the Civil War, but Sir Ralph had already
ordered 100,000 bricks to be made and the work-
men could not be discharged at once. Two years
later, however, in 1658, the building was begun
afresh ; the brickyard was trenched and as soon
as the brickmakers could come, tools, wheel-bar-
rows and moulds were delivered to them by their
employer. Bricks and tiles were made at the
same period at Brill from the earth of Brill Hills *
and the brick-fields in the neighbourhood on the
line of the Brill Tramway still continue. The
earth there was also used for earthenware drain
pipes.
Brick-making was carried on in other parts
of the county in early times. In 1831,* 116
men were employed in the industry either as
masters or workmen, and in 1862 there were
brick-fields at Fenny Stratford, Whitchurch,
Burnham, Chalfont St. Peter and Hillesden.6
It is curious, however, that the brick-fields at
Slough are not mentioned at that date, since they
are now the most important in the county and
had been established before 1862.
The town of Slough has grown up very
recently ; the demand for houses there and the
facilities for the transportation of bricks have both
been made by the building of the Great Western
Railway. The brick-fields were started about
sixty-three years ago by Mr. Thomas Nash and
are now owned by a company formed in 1 893
under the name of H. & J. Nash, Ltd. The
fields extend into the neighbouring parishes
of Langley Marish and Iver, and about four-
teen million bricks are made annually, steam-
"Lipscomb, Hist, of Suds, i, 53.
* Pop. Ret. 1831, i, 34
6 Sheahan, Hist, and Topog. of Bucks. 538, 772,
815, 827, 281.
114.
INDUSTRIES
power having been used for the last twenty
years.*
Buckinghamshire is not famous for any great
potteries, but the Brill pottery dates from very
ancient times. The first mention of potters
there is in 1254,' in an inquisition as to rights of
gathering wood in Brill Woods. The jurors gave
evidence as to the privileges of certain ecclesias-
tical lords and ended with saying that the potters
took small-wood, &c., for their kilns contrary to
the forest regulations. The right to dig brick
earth in Barnwood Forest was probably theirs
from time immemorial, but the lord of the
manor of Brill exacted an annual payment of
4*. bd. known as the 'Claygavel.' This was
paid in the I3th and I4th centuries with regu-
larity and is continually entered in the steward's
accounts.' At the disafforestmcnt of Barnwood
in the reign of James I,' an allotment of common-
able land was made for artificers and cottages, by
an order of the Court of Chancery, ' many
artificers of Brill having received employment by
making brick, tyle, lyme and potts out of the
soyle of Brill hills.' A pot was dug up at Long
Crendon near Brill, about 1885, containing coins
of the period of the Civil War and earlier, and
presumably was made by the Brill potters.
More recently the chief pottery works were
carried on by a family of the name of Hubbocks,
the last descendant being still at Brill at the
present time.10 They were potters for 1 49 years
and the father of the present Mr. Hubbocks owned
the last pottery. His kiln is still to be seen, and
was used till within three years of his death,
which took place about thirty-two years ago.
He used the old wheel and fashioned the pots
with his finger and thumb. At one time,
presumably during the lifetime of the elder
Hubbocks, there were seven potteries in Brill,
and in 1831 thirty-five men were employed in
making earthenware pottery in the county.11
The industry was, however, not in a flourishing
condition a few years later, owing to the in-
creased price of fuel and the cost of carriage,11
but in 1862, there was still a pottery for the
manufacture of brown earthenware. The colour
however, seems more generally to have been
' From information kindly given by Mr. A. H.
Woolley, 14 Mill Street, Slough.
7 HunJ. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 21.
' Mins. Accts. bdlc. 759, nos. 30, 31.
I Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, i, 107.
'* From information kindly obtained from Mr. Hub-
bocks, by Mrs. Riley, Brill Vicarage.
II Pop. Ret. 1831, i, 34.
" Lipscomb, Hut. of Bucki. i, 107.
varying shades of yellow and green, produced by
the different kinds of clay from which the pots
were made.
Hubbocks made for the most part flower-pots
and large pans and jugs, one or two of which
are to be seen at Brill, but they bear no date
since he only dated his pots at the request of the
customer. His stock was bought up some
years ago ' for a museum in Oxford.'
An older pot is in the possession of Mr. F. H.
Parrott, of 'The Camp,' Kimble. It bears the
indented inscription 'M.M. 1764 'on its side
and on the bottom is written ' John Sheperde,
Poter, Brill, Bux.' The pot is of rough red
earthenware with a greenish-brown glaze and
was found in a cottage at Brill where it was
bought by a man at Aylesbury, who sold it to
its present owner.
There were other potteries at Coleshill, a ham-
let in the parish of Amersham, and at Chalfont
St. Peter, in the early part of the i gth century.11
The latter, which is now called the Beaconsfield
Pottery, was established in 1 805 by Mr. William
Wellins, but changed hands shortly and was
bought by Mr. John Swallow, who practically
was the real starter of the pottery. It has never
assumed very large proportions, and Mrs. M.
Saunders & Son, the lessees of the pottery, now
chiefly produce flower-pots, stands, chimney-pots
and pipes and similar articles.14 It has, however,
continued working to the present day, in spite of
the keen competition in the industry.
A pottery of another character existed near
Great 'Marlow until the present year, when
it was moved to Staffordshire.16 The Med-
menham pottery was established ten years ago
about a mile from the town of Great Marlow,
with the object of producing architectural pot-
tery and tiles with individuality in design and
execution. To secure this, the works were
established in the country, materials from Mar-
low being used when possible and village work-
people only employed for the most part. It has
however, been found impossible to continue the
pottery in Buckinghamshire, so far from the
main pottery districts. Some of the chief pieces
of work accomplished were, however, done while
the pottery was still at Marlow, one of the most
important being the frieze surrounding the new
hall of the Law Society in Chancery Lane.
11 Ibid, iii, 146 ; Sheahan, Hut. and lopog. of
Biukt. 8*7.
14 From information kindly supplied by Mrs.
Saunders & Son, Beaconsfield Pottery.
" Information kindly given by Mr. Conrad
Dressier.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
BELL-FOUNDRIES
In the church tower of Caversfield, formerly
in Buckinghamshire but since 1845 included in
Oxfordshire, is what is probably the oldest
church bell remaining in England ; it may be
fairly considered as of ' local ' as opposed to
London origin. Its very curious form and
inscriptions have been fully described by the
present writer elsewhere,1 but its quite excep-
tional interest merits additional notice. The
shape is probably unique ; it has a very round
shoulder, an extremely long waist, and it is
nearly the same size all the way down from
shoulder to lip. Ordinarily the greatest thick-
ness of a bell is at the sound-bow, diminishing
again thence to an edge at the lip ; but in this
bell the thickness continues increasing below the
sound-bow until it ends abruptly in a flat lip
2 in. thick. The diameter at lip is 2of in. ;
height to crown 2o£ in. The large canons add
about another 7 in. to the height (5^ in. visible
under the stock).
Round the sound-bow is very legibly inscribed,
with a perfectly plain initial cross, in equally
plain capitals of Roman character, except only
that the G is curved in Lombardic character,
the A has a cross-bar on the top, and the 3 is
reversed : —
+ INHONORG • DEI • GT2ANTI •
LAVRGNCII
Round the sound-bow is a second inscrip-
tion,1* which had hitherto baffled all attempts
to decipher it. It was scratched in extra-
ordinary characters by hand on the cope, not
stamped, and is reversed, that is it reads from
right to left. It cannot be adequately repro-
duced in type, but the intention was apparently
as follows : —
HUGLH] GARGATfE] SIBILLAQCUE] UXOR
EJUS H[/EC] TIMPANNA (= tympana)
FECERUNT ECPONI (=exponi)
At the beginning of the reign of Henry II,
Brian Fitz Count, Lord of Wallingford, the
owner of the manor of Caversfield and other
estates, entered a religious house ; the king
seized the properties and bestowed this manor
on Roger Gargate. Ten years later (1164)
Roger granted the church of this parish to the
Abbey of Missenden, to take effect on the next
voidance of the rectory. Browne Willis2 states,
1 The Ch. Bells of Bucks. (Jarrold, 1 897).
u This inscription was erroneously described (torn,
cit.) as if on another and now destroyed bell.
' Hilt, and Antiq. of Town of Buckingham, 165. In
the 'Liber Cartarii Monasterii Beate Marie de Mis-
sendene ' are transcribed ten deeds concerning this
parish, but all dates are omitted.
on the authority of the Register of Missenden
Abbey, that Hugh Gargate confirmed his father's
donation, and that Hugh's wife, Sibill de Cavers-
field, swore that she would not interfere.
Hugh seems to have been in possession of the
estate by 1207, as his name appears in the Fine
Rolls for that year (9 John) ; and he was
apparently still living in 1216, as his name
appears in the Close Rolls for that year ( 1 8 John).
He must have died soon afterwards — in or before
1219 — because Kennett2 under the date of that
year (3 & 4 Hen. Ill) quotes a deed by which
Isabel daughter of Hugh Gargate of Caversfield,
widow, gave to the church at Burcester part
of a croft (the other part having been already
given by her sister Muriel) on condition that the
canons of that church should receive her and her
mother into the prayers of their house for ever.
Though the omission of her father's name does
not prove that he was dead, it tends to suggest
that supposition ; and dated the same year is
another deed in which there occurs — ' ego
Sybilla de Kaversfeld quondam uxor Hugonis
Gargat in pura viduitate,' which leaves no
doubt as to the fact. An agreement follows
between William de Ros and Sibil de Cavers-
field and Muriel her daughter, by which Sibil
and Muriel did remit to William de Ros the
lands which lately belonged to Hugh Gargat in
the village of Warmington. Dated 4 Hen. Ill
apud Oxon. (= 1220).
It seems therefore clear that the bell was cast
before 1219.
There is nothing to give any clue to its
founder, but in early days the difficulty of car-
riage usually necessitated the casting of church
bells either on the spot, or at a foundry
within some dozen miles, unless water-carriage
was available. No village is too small to have
been the site of a foundry, and many early bells
were turned out by monks in the religious houses,
but the three nearest towns to Caversfield are
Bicester (Oxon. 2 m. S.), Buckingham (8£ m.
NE.), and Woodstock (Oxon. 10 m. SW.).
There is apparently nothing to connect either of
the Oxfordshire towns with this craft (until the
1 7th century, when James Keene from Bedford
set up a foundry at Woodstock), but Buck-
ingham was the site of a flourishing bell-founding
business by the i6th century at any rate, and
several other bells have to be mentioned, show-
ing probably at least three ' local ' foundries not
out of range, in the course of the 1 4th century.
Oddly enough, the next five bells in age in
the county to that at Caversfield are by a London
" Par. Antiq. (ed. I, 1695), 189 ; (ed. 2, 1818),
i, 264, 266, 268.
116
INDUSTRIES
founder, Michael de Wymbis, by whom no other
bells arc known anywhere ; but there is docu-
mentary evidence proving that he was founding
bells in London in 1290, and dead by 1310.'
It seems a long way to have dragged two of his
bells all the way from London to Old Bradwell
and one to Lee ; the other two are at Bradenham,
and there is evidence apparently leaving no doubt
that they only came there in the i6th century,
probably bought second-hand after the suppres-
sion of some religious house not very far off".
As Bradenham itself is within a few miles of the
Thames, and the original home of the bells may
have been still nearer the river, their journey from
London would have been comparatively simple.
One other 1 4th-century bell in Buckinghamshire,
at Tattenhoe, is by a London founder, Peter de
Weston, who died in 1 347," but as the bell is quite
small, not much over I cwt., its transport would
have presented no serious difficulty.
Within a radius of 1 1 miles from Buckingham
as centre, or actually within a radius of under
<j miles from Leckhampstead, are no less than
nine bells which may be confidently assigned to
the 1 4th century; they are probably all of
' local ' origin, and seem to be the work of about
five different founders, though by no means
necessarily emanating from as many different
foundries ; that is to say that two or more
founders may have succeeded each other at the
same foundry. There is no reason to suggest
that any of the bells were cast at Leckhampstead,
but 4$- miles thence to the north-west was
Luffield Abbey, which is a very likely birthplace
for at least some of them.
Of these nine bells five have the same initial
cross in the inscription, so we need not doubt
their common origin, and three of the five have
the same lettering as well. Possibly the oldest
is the treble at Little Linford, inscribed in
rudely-formed Lombardic capitals, without any
stop or increase of space between the words : —
+AVEMARIAGRACIAPLENA
The tenor at Newton Purcell, only just over
the Buckinghamshire border, in Oxfordshire,
has the same inscription, but arranged thus : —
+ AVE : MARVIA : GRACT7IA : PLENA?
The treble at Barton Hartshorn, in Bucking-
hamshire, barely a mile from the last, has : —
+ IACOBVVS : ESTUNOMENtfEIVS
The shield on the two latter bells is chevronie,
but the cheverons are inverted. As this arrange-
ment has no existence hcr.ildic.illy it is doubtless
merely a trade device of the founder.
A fourth bell having the same initial cross as
•
1 Ch. Belli of Bucks. 6.
"Ibid. 9.*
the last three, but a better-formed lettering, is at
Thornton. It bears a rhyming hexameter : —
+ SINT : PRO I ELYA : MICHAEL \ DEVS !
ATQVE : MARIA
It seems to allude to Elias de Tingewick, who
was rector here from 1315 to 1347.*
The fifth appearance of the above initial cross
is on the treble at Radston or Radstone St. Law-
rence, Northants (west of Leckhampstead, and
within the suggested radius). Mr. North * un-
fortunately does not figure the lettering. Its
rhyming hexameter has something of a family
likeness to the last one : —
+ FIT ! TVA : LAVRENTI : FORMA :
CAMPANA: DECENTI
At Chetwode the single (large) bell also bears
a rhyming hexameter of similar character, in
lettering very similar to the Thornton set, but
smaller, with initial cross to correspond ; a re-
markable peculiarity of the inscription being the
employment of the initial ' I ' as the second syll-
able of a ' spondee,' to be read as ' J ' to avoid
making the previous syllable into a false
quantity : —
+ ME:TIBI:XP*E:DABAT: I: CHETWODE:
QVEM : PERAMABAT
There were several John Chetwodes to choose
from, but one who died c. 1347 gives approxi-
mately the expected date.
The same cross and lettering occur on the
saunce bell at Leckhampstead, in which the
oddly-blundered Latin inscription is made worse
by the letter ' K ' having apparently to do duty
for both ' H ' and ' R,' which seem to have been
broken or otherwise missing. The curiously
long-tailed 'Q' has been divided into three parts,
two of which do duty as stops between the
words. These facts, and the worn appearance
of the remaining letters, indicate that this bell is
later than that at Chetwode, but how much so
is difficult to determine, though quite possibly it
may not be older than the i6th century : —
+ CKESTIT S ME L FIKI S FECET
The late Mr. E. J. Payne * suggested that the
first word was intended to read 'CHESTIL'
as an abbreviated form of Chastillon, the family
to whom the manor belonged; if so 'L' (and
perhaps ' A ') may be added to the category of
missing letters ; but the Leckhampstead estate
passed out of the Chastillon family before 1398.*"
4 Browne Willis similarly explains the allusion in
Hist, and Anfiq. of Buck. 300.
• Ch. Belli of Nor than ft.
• In a review of ' The Ch. Bells of Bucb.' in Tbt
Records of Bucks, viii, 41 (1898).
• Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, iii, 24.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
The eighth of this group of nine bells is the
other bell at Barton Hartshorn. The cross and
lettering are very similar to those on the treble
previously mentioned, which may be due merely
to contemporary style. The two sets are figured
on plate VI of Church Bells of Bucks, where the
'C' on the treble so closely matches the ' E" on
the tenor, that taken by themselves they would
probably be considered to belong to the same
set. The patterns of the heads and canons of
the two bells, however, differ so much as to
point (irrespective of the lettering) to different
founders, but not necessarily different foundries.
The inscription is : —
+ IHESVPIEFLOSMARIE
From the absence of any stop or increase of
space between the words, this bell seems closely
to correspond in date to the treble at Little
Linford, and though it may be evidence to the
contrary, it is more likely to show that these
two bells are the earliest of this group.
The last bell in this restricted radius is the
single at Foscott, which is blank, so beyond the
opinion that it undoubtedly belongs to the I4th
century, and is a well-cast bell, nothing more
can be said about it. A very careful comparison
of head and canons might possibly show a family
likeness to some other bell.
Besides the above nine bells there was for-
merly a bell evidently of the I4th century at
Caversfield (unfortunately melted in 1876), in-
scribed in a pretty little set of Lombardic
capitals and cross to match, together with the
impression of a coin : —
+ O IN + HOHORE (fie) + BEATI +
LAVRENCII
So far as can be judged by a rubbing (kindly
lent by Mr. H. B. Walters, F.S.A.), the saunce
at Idbury, Oxon (5^ miles N. by W. of
Burford), is inscribed with the same cross and
lettering : —
+ AVE S PLENA I GRACIA
The discovery of this bell has caused the writer
to alter the opinion expressed in Church Bells
of Bucks, that the Caversfield bell was cast in
London. It seems more likely that the two are
of ' local ' origin. Idbury is about 23 miles
west of Caversfield, so perhaps their founder
lived in Oxfordshire, somewhere about Chipping
Norton, or one of the villages to the south-east
of that town.
There are three bells in Buckinghamshire, the
seconds at Little Missenden, Ravenstone, and Stoke
Hammond respectively, which are believed to be
by John Rofford, Ruffbrd, or Rughford, who
was appointed royal bell-founder in 1367, and
was therefore probably working in London.
Bells by the same founder are found in Bedford-
shire, Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire, and Leices-
tershire, and at Christchurch, Hants, where
there are two bearing unusually long inscrip-
tions, each consisting of two rhyming hexa-
meters. There is also a bell of this make
at Magdalen College School, Wainfleet, Lin-
colnshire, to which it must have been brought
second-hand, as the school was not founded till
1484. John Rofford was dead before 1390 ;
and was followed by a William Rufford, who is
believed to be the founder of the tenor at Hard-
mead, and of the second at Beachampton, which
latter was pronounced by the late Mr. J. C. L.
Stahlschmidt to be ' clearly a Midland counties'
bell ' ; otherwise William Rufford was thought
to be a London founder. In 1888 Mr. Stahl-
schmidt discovered that in the Patent Roll of
21 Richard II (1398) a William Belmaker of
Toddington, Bedfordshire, is mentioned, but he
hesitated to say whether this indicated an actual
bell-founder by trade, or a descendant of one re-
taining the trade name as a surname.7 In 1 906
Mr. Fred. G. Gurney,8 while making researches
into the history of the Ruffords of Northall in
Edlesborough (Buckinghamshire), traced the pedi-
gree back to ' William Rufford, of Tudyngton
belmaker,' who is mentioned in a licence dated
8 October 1390, by which Thomas Bullok
of Edlesborough might enfeoff the parsons of
' Tudyngton and Edelesburgh ' and others with
lands there, in trust to grant them to Thomas
Rufford his son-in-law, son of William above>
and to his wife Katherine, daughter of Thomas
Bullok.9 It is very probable that William the
Bellmaker of Toddington is identical with
William Rufford, and the existence of a bell
foundry at Toddington seems to be placed be-
yond doubt.
William Rufford was still living in 1415, for
another William, possibly his son, is called
'junior' at that date. The family took their
name from Rufford, in Chalgrove parish, co.
Oxon, where Thomas Rufford at his death in
1420 held 63 acres of the heirs of Dru (Drogo)
Barentyn as of the manor of ' Chalgrave ' 10 in
Oxfordshire, as well as land in chief at Edles-
borough in Buckinghamshire. Mr. Gurney
further mentions finding an Andrew Roffard of
an earlier date than John, who may have be-
longed to the same family. He was one of
many rioters to arrest whom commissioners were
appointed on 20 May 1348, on complaint of
the Black Prince, for having assaulted his ser-
vants, detained his horses and carts, and carried
away his goods at Thame.11
7 Cb. Belli of Bucks. 18.
8 Kindly communicated by letter to the writer.
' Cal. Pat. 1388-92, p. 305.
10 Inq. p.m. taken at Oxford, 8 Hen. V. By a
coincidence there is a village of 'Chalgrave' only
i mile from Toddington in Beds.
11 Cal. Pat. 1348-50, p. 156.
INDUSTRIES
For over a century, beginning from the latter
part of the 1 3th century, when bell-founders in
London begin to be recognizable, they were
almost always styled ' Potter,' or by the Latin
equivalent 0//ariui.™ Patter was a common
name in Buckinghamshire and Bedfordshire from
at least as early as 1213, and its very natural
corruption Porter appears from 1275. In the
Visitation of Bucks., by Wm. Harley, claren-
ceux king at arms, 1566, the arms of a John
Porter of Barton Hartshorn, who married about
the first half of the 1 4th century, are given as
* sa. 3 Bells ar.' ll This certainly seems a likely
coat to be borne by the descendant of a bell-
founder, although a local bell-founder would
hardly have had a coat of arms.
In the History, etc., of the Prebendal Church,
ttc., of Thame (Oxon.) by the late Rev. F. G.
Lee (1883), are many quotations from the oldest
known volume of Churchwardens' Accounts of
that parish.11* Among them a bell-founder named
Thomas Swadling is mentioned, who was em-
ployed there in 1450. No hint is given as to
his locality, but if he was a veritable founder
he was probably ' local.' Under 1465 'A man
from Ewelme ' (Oxon.) was perhaps a bell-hanger
or carpenter, rather than a founder. Dr. Lee
states that 'The Powells, or Ap Powells, of
Buckingham, had been likewise employed at
Thame, as early as the year 1503.' In the
same accounts for 1548 ' Richarde Hylton'
purchased the great bell and three little hand-
bells, but that is no reason why he need have
been a bell-founder.
Beginning in December 1552, the name of
John Appowell appears frequently in the Records
of the Borough Court of Buckingham. In July
1556, he is first described therein as 'Bel-
founder.'
In the Churchwardens' Accounts of Wing
(Buckinghamshire) for 1556, is: —
If payde for ou' coftp at buckyngam
when we made bargayne for
the bell xxjV.
II payde for oure coltf at )>" caftynge
of the bell iiij/. \d.
If payd to the bell founder . . iiij/7. viij/. \yl.
Other items follow proving the existence of a
bell-foundry in Buckingham at the above date,
" Ch. Bells of Bucks. 8 and 17.
"MS. B.M. 5181, fol. 80, and three other
copies, in one of which, No. 5867 (printed 1883),
the tincture of the field is given as Gules.
lu This exceptionally interesting volume was pre-
sented to the library of the Bucks. Archit. and
Arch. Soc., during the 'fifties of last century, but
had disappeared. Long search ultimately resulted in
discovering it at the Bodleian Library, Oxford, to
which it had been sold for £20 ! It was eventually
recovered by the exertions of the late Messrs. J.
Parker and E. J. Payne, and the present writer ; but
several years too late for references to be included in
the Cb. Belli of Bucks.
but mentioning no name ; but in the following
year's account, 1557, comes : —
If payde to John appowell for the
bell ........ iijA vj/. viijV.
According to the above Borough Records, he
seems to have been continually before the court,
sometimes as plaintiff*, sometimes as defendant, in
actions to recover very small debts.14 He was
Bailiff of Buckingham in 1559—60.
In the Thame Churchwardens' Accounts for
the year ending Ascensiontide, 1560, is : —
Ifm payd to John Appowell for Makyngc
of Certayne Iren about the bells . . . iijV.
and in the following year's account is : —
Itm pd to John Appowell for xv
finale barrf of Iren for the
west wyndow in the Churche. iij/. \d.
It seems very probable that the founder may
have had a contemporary namesake, who was a
blacksmith, and lived at Thame.
In the Visitation of Buckinghamshire, by Wil-
liam Harley in 1566, already referred to, John
Appowell is mentioned among the ' Burgefses
and late Baylifrs.'
In the Thame Churchwardens' Accounts for
the year ending Ascensiontide, 1567, is : —
Payd to John Appowell of Buck-
ingnm the bellfoundre for
Caftinge of the bell . . . xliij/.
with confirmatory entries in the same and two
following years.
In 1569 John Appowell served the office of
Bailiff of Buckingham for the second time, and
in 1572 he was churchwarden.
In the Churchwardens' Accounts of Shillington,
in Bedfordshire,1' for the year 1575, the foundry
is proved to have been in existence : —
Payd when they went to buckyng-
ham when they went w' the
great bell ....
and a few lines further on : —
[George Edwards] He laid forthe
at buckingham when they
went w' y* bell .....
xxijV.
ij/. iiijV.
with various other entries concerning the trans-
action, but no mention of the founder's name.
John Appowell was Bailiff of Buckingham for
the third time in the year beginning i May
1576. His death is recorded in the Bucking-
ham Register, thus: —
1577 Johes Appowel grosj et Ballivus Bucking
fepultz 0 good friday bonus dies veneris.
14 Detailed in Cb. Bells of Bucks. 175 et »eq.
" North, Ch. Belli of BeJs. 1 86.
119
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
His second son George succeeded to the bell-
founding business, but died in October of the
following year (1578). He had married in
February, and his young widow evidently only
survived him a few days. The wills of both
John and George are given in extenso in Church
Bells of Bucks., and many other details con-
cerning the family, including mention of several
persons of the same surname living at Thame,
and glimpses of founders of the same (or very
similar) name working in London. Probably
two generations of John Appowell appear in the
Churchwardens' Accounts of St. Lawrence's,
Reading, from 1516, and one or two other un-
important points combine to make it likely that
John Appowell came from Reading, and had
learnt his trade at the old-established foundry
there. No bells can be with certainty assigned
to him, though it is probable that bells bearing
a portion of the alphabet, or a string of letters
of which the interpretation, if one existed, is
lost, in one or other of two sets of lettering
or a mixture of both, may be the produce
of this foundry. They are at Croughton
(Northamptonshire), Twyford, Ickford, Em-
was closed, or whether another Appowell or some
one else whose name has not come to light
carried it on during the next few years, is un-
known; but before long two young men who had
learnt the craft in the celebrated Leicester foun-
dry settled at Buckingham, and soon got together
a good business. On 7 February 15 80 Thomas
Newcombe II of the Leicester Foundry was
buried at that town, leaving three sons and a
daughter, and also an apprentice named Bar-
tholomew Atton, ' Tanner and Bellfounder ' (like
his master), who was admitted to the Merchants'
Gild of Leicester in 1582-3. Robert New-
combe, the eldest of Thomas's children, and
Bartholomew Atton, evidently realizing that
other members of the Newcombe family had the
entire trade at Leicester, migrated to Buckingham
as partners, and set up for themselves. The Wing
Churchwardens' Accounts for 1586 show that a
bell was cast for that parish at Buckingham,
some time apparently between June and No-
vember 1585, but the name of the founder is
not mentioned. At Passenham, Northampton-
shire, but only 6£ miles from Buckingham, is a
bell inscribed in the large florid letters associated
Lr
FIG. i
mington (Oxfordshire), Hulcott, Bloxham (Ox-
fordshire), Little Brickhill, Tadley (Hampshire),
Milcombe (Oxfordshire),16 and doubtfully a few
others. One of the sets of lettering is no doubt
much older than John Appowell, and the initials
of the original owner are R.K.
The following 16th-century bells in neigh-
bouring counties want founders, and are probably
' locals ' : — The treble at Finmere (Oxfordshire),
4 miles from Buckingham, and with the same
lettering the treble at Midgham (Berkshire), 1 1
miles south-west of Reading ; the saunce at
Streatley (Berkshire), 10 miles from Reading;
also the second at Aston Tirrold, and the third
at Padworth ; the last two (both in Berkshire)
have the same lettering.
The oldest dated bell in Buckinghamshire is
the single at Horsenden, bearing four illegible
letters, ornamented, but apparently completely
worn out (fig. i), and the date 1582, in ex-
tremely distinct evenly-formed figures. It is
probably of ' local ' manufacture.
What happened to the Buckingham foundry
on the death of George Appowell, whether it
16 Rubbing kindly lent by Mr. A. D. Tyssen, D.C.L.
subsequently with the Buckingham foundry
exclusively : —
+ A + TRVSTY + FRENDE + YS + HARDE
+ TO + FYNDE + 1585 + +++++
and at Hoggeston (about 9 miles from Bucking-
ham) is a bell similarly inscribed, except that
being smaller there was not room in a single line
for the whole inscription, so the last word was
omitted, the inscription ending with TO and the
date, the latter for the same reason is stamped
(as to its first three figures) above the final orna-
ment, and the unit is indistinct, and may possi-
bly be 3 instead of 5. This inscription points
to the partnership, and the lettering came from
Leicester, so there is no reason to doubt that
these partners began work at Buckingham not
later than 1585.
At Seaton, Rutland,17 is an undated bell in-
scribed in the same lettering, but all set back-
wards : —
+ RYECHARDE BENETLYE
BELLFOVNDDER
17 North, Ch. Bells of Rutland, and his Ch. Bells of
Northants.
120
INDUSTRIES
As this is in the neighbourhood of Leicester, and
as the name appears in the registers of Leicester,
but not in those of Buckingham, Richard
Bentley was evidently founding at the former
town, whether on his own account, or as an
assistant. A Richard Bentley was married at
All Saints* in that town in 1571, and four chil-
dren of presumably the same Richard Bentley
were christened there between 1577 and 1585.'*
Further proof of the origin of Bartholomew
Alton is afforded by two bells,1' one at Treding-
ton, Worcestershire, inscribed in ornate capitals
I in. high : —
+ BARTELMEW ATON ^cB?
preceded and followed by a cross and crown,
which are known marks of the Newcombe Foun-
dry ; the other bell is at Baddesley Clinton,
Warwickshire, and is inscribed in the same let-
tering, with Thomas Newcombe's shield.
In the Churchwardens' Accounts of Wing for
the year ended 14 June 1590 is the earliest
documentary evidence of Bartholomew Alton
founding bells at Buckingham : —
pd vnto Bartholomewe Alton of Buck-
yngam for the caftyng of the
fecund bell W pultyng in ij C I xfi.
weyghl of new mcttell more then
the old bell weyghed
As some of the entries referring to this trans-
action precede the charge for ringing on St.
Hugh's Day, Alton must have been at work in
Buckingham before November 1589. At Hard-
wick the tenor, dated 1590, is inscribed
ROBART MEWCOME MADE ME
with an ornate cross, and ihe shield (fig. 2) ;
in the same year, the tenor at Loughton, and
ihe treble at Stoke Hammond have the other
Fie. 2
"In the Trans. Leici. Archil, and Arch. Soe. viii, 173
(1896), is recorded the will of a Richard Bentley, of
Sharnford, 1582, who was therefore probably not the
father of the above children.
" Ex inform. Mr. H. B. Walters, F.S.A.
partner's name, which continues regularly from
that year to appear on bells. Robert Newcombe
was buried according to the Buckingham Parish
Register on 2 February 1591-2.
In 1598 and iwo following years, Bartholo-
mew's name appears several times among the lists
of burgesses in the court rolls already mentioned.
In 1605 he was Bailiff of Buckingham. A bell
at Great Horwood dated that year is inscribed in
lettering (togeiher wilh an ornameni) belonging
to this foundry : — B A R A. A Robert Atlon
was chamberlain of ihe borough of Leicesler in
'592-3, but judging by ascertained dates it seems
likely thai he was father lo Bartholomew, and lhal
Robert ihe bell-founder whoappears from ihis date
was a son of Bartholomew. The Baptismal
Regisier of Buckingham is missing from May
1589 lo March 1592-3, during which interval
some of Bartholomew's children were probably
born ; and Robert may either have been among
ihe number, or he may have been baptized
before his parents left Leicester.
Two leaves* from the Churchwardens' Ac-
counts of Woodford Halse, Northanls, were
found loose in an old book purchased al a sale al
Byfield ; one of ihem dated 1609-10 enumer-
ates certain expenses of a deputaiion who
personally attended ihe casling of a bell : —
Imprimis payed for ihe earring of the
Bell unto Buckingham .... vu.
It. payed for alle when the Bell ware a
melting viijV.
It. payed for alle when the Belle ware
a running vjV.
It. payed for the Berriying of the Bell-
founder xj/.
It. payed for ale when the Bell ware a
taking up out of the mold . . . vjV.
It. payed Bell money unto the Bell-
founders men iij/. iiijd.
It. payed for a Band making that wee
did take of the Bellfounder . . . vjV.
It. payed for the casting of the Bell . . liij/. iiijd.
It. payyed for mettill for ihe Bell . . xlvij/. iijd.
It. payed for our charis in our dial in
ling Bockingame ziij/.
As ihe negalive evidence of ihe Regislers
goes to show that no Buckingham bell-founder
died just when the deputation from Woodford
Halse were seeing their bell recast, it may be
that ' burying of the bell-founder ' is a slang
term meaning a big drink on ihe occasion."
" Transcribed in Northanti. N. and Q. (vol. i,
Northampton, 1886).
" ' Burying a wife ' is a feast given by an apprentice
at the expiration of his articles (Halliwell, Diet, of
Archaic and Provl. Words). In the above quotation
'earring' is not an accidental mis-spelling, but the
Buckinghamshire pronunciation of the word to the
present day (and no doubt the Bedfordshire as well) ;
a ' Band ' is of course a Bond, or Agreement ;
'charis' probably means chargfs, or possibly shares;
and ' ling ' no doubt wants a mark of abbreviation,
and means leaving, .
121 l6
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
There are, however, certain changes in the
lettering used on bells from this year, and the
arabesque (fig. 3) makes its appearance ; and the
fact of Bartholomew's name appearing on a few
bells of later date, may merely be an early in-
stance of the common modern trade practice of re-
taining a man's name in the title of the firm for
years after his death. This was almost certainly
done in the case of Robert, a few years later.
A bell at Chellington, Bedfordshire, has : —
ROBERT n ATTOH n MADE n MEE a 1611 a
W ATTOM a
This is the only
bell known to
bear the name 23
of W. Atton,
whose baptism
seems to be re-
corded by the fol-
lowing entry in
the Buckingham
Register: — '1596
September Wm.
films Bartholomei
Atton decimo
die.'
He probably
discarded bell-
founding in favour
of a draper's busi-
ness, and served
the office of Bailiff
of Buckingham
four times, dying
in October 1655.
Of his two sons
who survived in-
fancy one was cer-
tainly, and the
other with little
doubt, a draper,
neither having
any connexion with bell-founding.
Bartholomew's name is reported23 on a bell
at Paulerspury, Northamptonshire, dated 1613 ;
on one at Kidlington, Oxfordshire, dated
1621 ; 24 on one at Passenham, Northampton-
Fic. 3
shire, dated 1624 ; and on one formerly at
Blisworth, Northamptonshire, dated 1626. All
of these (except perhaps the Kidlington bell),
have also Robert's initials, who continued bell-
founding until 1628, in which year the Buck-
ingham Register records that he was buried on
6 May. Robert had a son and namesake, but
the subsequent history of the business leaves
hardly any doubt that the entry refers to the
elder of the name.
Dated this year is the fourth bell at Grand-
borough, inscribed : —
ROBERT ATTON NATHANIEL BOLTTER
and ornamented by stamps already used by the
Attons, and a new running pattern (fig. 4),
which forms a connecting link between this
foundry and the Bagleys, as mentioned a little
further on.25
There was formerly a similarly dated and
inscribed bell at Harpole, Northamptonshire, but
the devices are not recorded.26
Bolter was evidently not a native of Bucking-
ham. In the registers of All Saints', Leices-
ter, is an entry of the burial of a William Bolther
in 1594-5. Between 1654 and 1664 there was
a Nathaniel Bolter at the Salisbury bell-foundry,
and a Jonathan Bolter there in 1656.
A bell at Great Horwood and another at
Tingewick, dated 1623, are inscribed in one of
the Atton sets of letters, ornamented with one
of their roses : —
PRAYSE YE THE LORDE ALWAYSE
The same inscription, with the rose again,
but wanting the last word, is on the third bell
at Grandborough ; and a bell at Edgcote, and
another at Paulerspury, both in Northampton-
shire, have the full inscription again, but the
lettering and ornaments are not stated.27 This
inscription on five bells in the same year, and
on no other known bell from this foundry,
suggests that some one besides Robert Atton
had a hand in their casting, neither his name
or initials being on any of them. On the
Great Horwood bell are, in addition, the initials
FIG. 4.
" Mr. North, in Bells of Beds, mentions a bell " The saunce at Chipping Norton, Oxon. by R.P.
inscribed w. ATTON & SON. but this is shown in Bells 162^., hi> this running pittern (Ex inform. Mr. H. B.
of Bucks (p. 208) to be an abso'.ute illusion. Walters, F.S.A.).
M North, Bells of Northants. " North, Bills of Northnnts.
" Ex Inform. Mr. A. D. Tyssen, D.C.L. " Ibid.
122
INDUSTRIES
(neither pair arc the rector's) : — I B , G V , R B.
It certainly seems probable that the first and last
pair belong to Jonathan and another Bolter.
The initials N B appear on four bells at Salis-
foundry at Drayton Parslow, his native village,
only a dozen miles from Buckingham, where we
may conjecture he learnt the art. Richard was
baptized in 1601 -2 ; and there is a bell at
FIG. 5
bury, in conjunction with W P (William
Purdue II, of Salisbury), in 1656, and on two
bells at Great Durnford, Wiltshire, dated the
following year.**
The arabesque (fig. 5) is on a bell at Tinge-
wick by Robert Alton in 1627.
In 1630, the Buckingham Register records
the burial of Bartholomew Alton on 29 May,
and it is most probable thai ihis was the bell-
founder from Leicester.
No bell is known to have been cast at this
foundry between 1628 and 1631, in which
year the treble at Loughton announces that
ROBERT ATTON MADE ME, and the fourth
at OIney, for the first and only time, gives his
address:— ROBERT ATTON OF BVCKING-
HAM MADE ME, and with other ornaments
already used has a new shield charged with three
bells (fig. 6).
1633 saw the founding of the last two bells
at Buckingham, the treble at Ashendon bearing
Robert's initials, and the tenor at Beachampton,
inscribed like the Loughton bell of two years
previously.
It is extremely likely that Henry Bagley I,
who opened his foundry at Chalcombe in North-
amptonshire, in or before 1632, learnt his
business at the Buckingham foundry, and ob-
tained thence the running pattern (fig. 4)
noticed on the bell at Grandborough dated
1628, bearing Nathaniel Bolter's name. Mr.
H. B. Walters has found a copy of the shield
first used at Loughton in 1631 (fig. 6), having
the initials I M added in the field on either
side of the upper bell, used by a Worcester
founder, John Martin (or possibly two of the
same name), between the years i644-93.w
By 1636, Richard Chandler, son of Anthony
Chandler a blacksmith, had established a bell-
" Lukis, Ch. Bells.
" 'The Ch. Bells of Worc«.' Worci. Dioc. Arcblt.
and Arch. S«r. Rep. 1901 (Reprint, p. 36), and 'Some
Note* on Worcs. Bell-founders,' Arch. Journ. btiii,
'93
Thornton, with nothing but the date 1635,
which may be by him, although none of the
figures certainly correspond with his known set.
RICHARD CHAMDELER 1636 together with
four little ornaments, was on bells at Grand-
borough (now melted), and Stcwkley (Bucks),
Nettleden (Herts, formerly Bucks.), and Milton
Bryant (Beds.), the last only bearing two out of
the four little ornaments. The Nettleden bell in
addition has an interesting survival in the shape
of the later of the two lion-head stamps which
belonged to the Wokingham-Reading foundry,
and was apparently last used not later than
1540. Only one other bell by Richard is
known — the tenor at Cheddington dated 1638,
where the name is inscribed twice over, and
only two of the four little ornaments were
used.
Richard Chandler died in June of that year,
Fie. 6
123
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
and his will 30 was proved by his widow Bridget
on the 22nd of the following November. His
eldest son Anthony was baptized in August
1622, and was, therefore, probably not sixteen
at the time of his father's death. Very likely
he kept the smithy going with the help of a
journeyman, but the bell-foundry appears to have
ceased until 1650, when he cast the treble at
Simpson (recently melted), which was quite a
curiosity ! It was hardly of greater diameter at
the lip than at the shoulder, while the waist,
about half-way between crown and lip, was of
considerably less diameter. It was inscribed, as
were most of his bells, CHAMDLER MADE ME
with no Christian name or initial, followed by
the pattern (fig. 7). Orders at once came to
him in steady succession.
Meanwhile there were certainly two Richard
Chandlers connected with the business besides
the first of the name who died in 1638 as
above mentioned.
figures may have been pressed on the ' cope ' in
readiness for the new year (though then not be-
ginning until 25 March) before his death. Two
bells, however, respectively dated 1 71 1 and
1715, inscribed actually on the waist, maybe
considered as antagonistic to the theory. A few
bells dated 1651, 1654, anc' apparently others
in i684,81 on which the name appears as
CHAHDELER without Christian name, may
also perhaps indicate his workmanship. How-
ever this may be with regard to Richard
Chandler II, his nephew and namesake, Richard
III, the eldest son of Anthony, who was baptized
15 December 1650, evidently became partner
with his father on completing his twenty-first
year, from which time Anthony distinguished the
bells he cast by the addition of his Christian
name. His will33 is dated 28 August 1679, and
was proved on 2 1 April following, so an entry of
burial of an Anthony on i September 1679
evidently refers to the founder, though three
Fie. 7
FIG. 8
In 1675 the name of Richard Chandler be-
gins again on bells, and this seems to have been
Anthony's elder son, whom we may call
Richard III. The second Richard seems to
have been Anthony's younger brother, and never
to have had the honour of inscribing his name on
a bell, but his work is possibly recognizable by
the expedient of the inscription (either the sur-
name only, or with Richard prefixed) being
placed on a few bells somewhat lower down than
usual, generally on a line with, and taking the
place of portions of, the ' rims ' ; so that it reads
thus : —
ICHAUDLER:
IMADE:
:ME:
He was buried I January 1704-5, and
though the latest bell inscribed in that position
(the tenor at Wavendon) is dated 1705, this does
not necessarily invalidate the theory, as the
M Given at length in Ch. Bells of Bucks.
other Anthonies are recorded as buried subse-
quently at Drayton.
In 1 68 1 Anthony's second son George began
placing his name on bells. His baptism is re-
corded on 3 March 1654. After 1683 his
name disappears for the long interval of nineteen
years, unless Lipscomb ** is correct in saying that
he cast the former tenor at Wing in 1687, which
was unfortunately exchanged in 1863. Begin-
ning in 1683, while some bells bear Richard's
name, numerous others bear merely the surname
(as in Anthony's time), which Mr. Stahlschmidt34
suggested represent the work of ' the firm ' as
opposed to a particular individual.
The pattern, fig. 8, was used by ' the firm '
on the saunce at Beachampton in 1695, and by
Richard at Bicester (Oxon.) in 1715.
31 Ch. Bells ofNorthants. at Stoke Bruerne.
" Given at length, Ch. Bells of Bucks. 228.
33 Hist, of Bucks, iii, 527.
34 Bells of Herts. 49.
I24
INDUSTRIES
There is no evidence of a second George
Chandler blossoming into a bell-founder by 1 702,
when the name reappears on bells : and it seems
quite a reasonable conjecture that it was found
that the two Richards (nephew and uncle) were
sufficient to manage the bell-founding, and that
George either devoted himself to the smithy, or
may have migrated elsewhere in pursuit of work ;
and that some time after his uncle had passed his
threescore and ten years it was found advisable
to get the assistance of a younger man.
1723 is the latest date on which the name of
Richard III appears on a bell, and the saunce at
Emmington, in Oxfordshire, is inscribed in one
of George's sets of lettering, so there is no
question of its foundry : T. C. 1723. This must
be attributed to Thomas, the younger brother of
Richard III and George, who thus made his
first and last appearance.
The third at Stone, by ' the firm,' in one of
George's sets of lettering, in 1726, is the latest
known bell bearing the name Chandler ; Richard
was buried on 27 April of that year, three years
after the appearance of his last bell. George
probably then left the village, as his burial does
not appear in the register of his native parish, nor
in that of the neighbouring parish of Stewkley,
where several entries of this surname occur.
Thomas (younger brother of Richard III and
George), was buried in his native parish in 1732.
The Drayton Parslow foundry was continued
by Edward Hall, who had in all probability been
previously working there. He may have been
the son of a Henry Hall of Stewkley, but nothing
is known about his previous history. The burial
of his wife Elizabeth is recorded on Christmas
Day, 1733-4 according to one register, or
1734-5 according to another one; and on
30 April 1741 he married Mary the widowed
daughter of Richard Chandler II. His business,
owing no doubt to the gradual concentration of
this trade in the large businesses of London and
other centres, as roads improved, was evidently
very small — less than one bell a year so far as
is known ; and at last comes the entry in the
Drayton Parslow register (in the rector's hand-
writing) : —
(Buried) Edward Hall poor old Bellfounder
Feb. 9 1755.
There was until recently at Hillcsden a bell
inscribed : —
W HALL MADE ME 1756
This is the last bell known to have been cast
at this foundry. The individual is not men-
tioned in the register of the parish, but probably
he was a son of Edward, born before his father's
migration to the foundry.
The late Rev. T. A. Turner mentions " being
" Records of Buckt. ir, 125 (1872).
told by an old man named Baldwin that he in
early life succeeded in the village smithy business
a William Hall, who it was suggested was a
grandson of Edward, but it seems as likely
that he belonged to a generation later — that is a
grandson of the founder William. Baldwin had
met with various bits of bell-metal, metal cast-
ings, sand and other things, which William Hall
had told him his grandfather used in the bell-
foundry business.**
The saunce at Westbury seems to be of the
time of Edward III, and as Westbury is only
5 miles from Buckingham, this bell should
apparently be added to the group above described.
The bell in the clock tower at Aylesbury is
blank, but is undoubtedly an old bell, and is
probably the bell mentioned in a report at the
Record Office dated 1555 as having come from
the house of Friars of Aylesbury, and was then
used as the market bell of that town.17 It is
probably of ' local ' origin.
The two bells at Ibstone are probably of the
1 8th century, and are more likely to be by an
itinerant than by a strictly ' local ' founder.
On the single bell at Fingest is incised : —
J. HOBBS LANE END 1830.
He was an iron-founder, and this appears to be
his sole attempt at bell-casting. His son, Mr.
Walter Hobbs, continued the iron-foundry until
his death in 1902, when the business was pur-
chased by Mr. Richard Smith, who afterwards
closed the works, which, however, have now
been re-opened.
The Fingest bell, no doubt from a want of
technical knowledge having resulted in a wrong
gradation in the various degrees of thickness,
sounds at a distance as if it were cracked, but as
one approaches it is found that the bell is quite
sound, but is badly out of tune with itself. If
the crooks used to form the core and cope are
scientifically shaped, so as to ensure the correct
thicknesses throughout the bell, it should give,
when lightly struck, the key-note, third, fifth,
and octave at the respective distances up the side;
and when struck a full blow (as by the clapper)
on the sound-bow, the common chord results ;
if therefore the thickness at any part is incorrect,
the bell becomes out of tune with itself (and
many bells are slightly so).
The saunce at Hardwick, besides the names
of the churchwardens, bears : —
1850. S. SEYMOUR, AYLESBURY
He was an ironmonger in that town, and there
can be little doubt that he did not cast it
himself.
" Cb. Belli ofButkt. 237.
" Ld. Rev. Rec. bdle. 1392, file 10.
125
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
IRON-FOUNDRIES, SHIPBUILDING AND
RAILWAY WORKS
In 1772 Wyrardisbury mill was tenanted by
Jukes Colson, who worked it as an iron mill, but
five years later it had been turned into a copper
mill by the Gnoll Company.1 The mill was again
sold in 1790, and was tenanted early in the
i gth century by George and Thomas Glascott,
who were brass-founders. They, however, closed
their works in 1820, and the mill has since been
converted into a paper-mill. A mill at Horton
was also at one time used for iron works, but
these were closed early in the igth century.2
In 1831 only eleven men were returned as being
employed as iron-founders,3 either as masters or
workmen, but thirty-four were employed at
copper mills. In the middle of the i gth cen-
tury several foundries were established. The
Castle Iron Works were started at Buckingham
in 1857, and were owned by a limited liability
company, the shareholders being mostly local
people,4 anxious to improve the trade of the
town. The foundry was chiefly occupied in
making steam-engines of various kinds. Certain
road engines were made there which acquired a
considerable amount of importance at the time.
In 1858 a road locomotive was built for the
Marquis of Stafford, which attained to the speed
of twelve miles an hour, and a few years later
the foundry produced a steam carriage for export
to Belgium, which held three passengers as
well as the stoker. It averaged ten miles an
hour, but on good roads could attain to sixteen,
and its inventor, Mr. Thomas Rickett, the
manager of the Castle Iron Works, drove it in
1860 to Windsor, where it was inspected by
Queen Victoria.6 Various machines for agri-
cultural purposes were also made, a locomotive
steam cultivator being exhibited at a meeting of
the Royal Agricultural Society at Chester in
1858.
Another engineering business, known as the
Watling Works, was started at Stony Stratford
about the same time as the Castle Iron Works
at Buckingham. The position of the little town
on the Grand Junction Canal gave it better
means of communication, and the business is
still carried on at the present day.6 In 1845 tne
late Mr. Edward Hayes started the works for
general engineering, but gradually the business
has become confined to the building of steam
1 Gyll, Hist. ofWraysbury, 72.
1 Ibid. 198.
* Pop. Ret. (1831), i, 34.
4 Sheahan, Hist, and Topog. of Bucks, 231—2.
6 lllus. Lond. News, n Feb. 1860, with illustration.
6 From information kindly supplied by Mr. Edward
Hayes.
126
yachts, tugs and launches. These are exported
to all parts of the world ' for steamers and
machinery of various descriptions have been
built for the British Admiralty, Crown Agents
for the Colonies, the Board of Works, Trinity
House Pilots, the Shah of Persia, the Sultan of
Morocco,' besides various foreign governments
and well-known shipping lines. ' During the
late South African War a little steamer destined
to work in connexion with the landing of troops
and stores actually steamed from the place she
was launched, the Old Stratford Wharf, which
is a branch of the Watling Works, along the
Grand Junction Canal to the Thames and thence
to Delagoa Bay, South Africa.' In Stony Strat-
ford it is not an unusual sight ' to see one of
these steamers being drawn on large eight-wheel
trolleys by a powerful traction engine ' from the
Watling Works, where they are built, to the
wharf half a mile away, and often followed by
its engine and boiler on separate trolleys. In
1 86 1 a display was given at the works of a
patent steam windlass for which Mr. Hayes had
obtained high honours at an exhibition at Leeds,
and the firm have since been equally successful
at later exhibitions. The steamers originally
built for the river-side work of the Metropolitan
Fire Brigade came from the Watling Works,
and the present Mr. Edward Hayes has taken
out numerous patents for improving steamers,
one of the most recent being ' for cheapening
and facilitating the exportation of small steamers
abroad, making it possible to erect steamers at
the site of their work and where only unskilled
native labour can be obtained.' Other iron and
brass-foundries are worked at the present day at
Maidenhead, Horton, Chalfont St. Giles, Looseley
Row, Chesham, and Walton (Aylesbury).
At Slough there is also a large firm of manu-
facturing ironmongers and engineering contractors
whose business was established in i8l5-7
The Wolverton works, belonging to the Lon-
don and North Western Railway, give employment
to a large number of people in the neighbour-
hood and date from the earliest days of the
railway.8 When it was opened in 1 838 as the
London and Birmingham Railway the works
were started for building engines, and were
purely locomotive works until 1865. At that
time Wolverton Station was of great importance,
all trains stopping there, and descriptions of its
magnificence figure largely in accounts of the
' Letter from Messrs. Mark Duffield & Sons, Ltd.
High Street, Slough.
8 Description of the London and North Western
Railway Company's Carriage Works at Wolverton, 1 907.
INDUSTRIES
county written in the middle of the I gth century.
Around the station and works sprang up two
new villages, New Bradwell and New Wolver-
ton, inhabited entirely by the employees of the
railway and tradesmen supplying their needs.
In 1840 about four hundred hands were em-
ployed, but in the next twenty years the numbers
had increased to between 2,300 and 2,400 and
the factory contained brass and iron-foundries,
shops for erecting, repairing, and fitting engines,
and for making boilers, &c.*
In 1 860, however, a change was decided upon
resulting in the conversion of the Wolverton
works into carriage works,10 and the removal of
the engine factories to Crewe. The removal
took place between 1865 and 1877 and since
that time the works have grown beyond recog-
nition, and contain shops for building carriages
and all their accessories and also for repairing
them, covering in all about eighty acres of land
and employing about four thousand five hundred
hands.
NEEDLE-MAKING
The village of Long Crendon was long
celebrated for an extensive manufactory of
needles. There is considerable doubt as to the
date of the introduction of needle-making into
England, the tradition being that an ' Indian '
first brought the art to London about 1545, but
that it died out with him.1 It must, however,
shortly have been revived, for it seems to have
been brought to Long Crendon about 1560 by
one Christopher Greening.* In some accounts,
a Mr. Damer, a member of a Roman Catholic
family, is said to have settled the Greenin:; family
in the village in 1650,' but this is most prob-
ably merely a confusion in the date, since the
Greenings had then lived there for nearly a hun-
dred years.
A Christopher Greening lived at Long Cren-
don in 1558* ; from 1556 to 1568 he was also
churchwarden and drew up, with John Padnoll,
the first parish register book preserved there.'
Another Christopher, the son of John Greening,
was born in 1587,' and against his name is a
later marginal note saying, ' this man first brought
out needle-making.7 ' Probably he was the grand-
son of the first needle-maker, but having the same
Christian name, later tradition confused the two
Christopher Greenings.
Other accounts say that needles were made in
the village before Greening's arrival, but that he
was of some importance in the trade and hence
its introduction was attributed to him.8
The chief family of needle-makers were the
Shiimptons, many of whom lived in the neigh-
bourhood of High Wycombe and were officers
of the borough.' In the i8th century the trade
was flourishing. When a sufficient quantity of
* Sheahan, Hist, and Topog. of Bucks. 647.
10 Carriage Works at Wolverton.
1 Home Counties Mag. vi, 184.
' Ibid.
* Chambers1 Journ. 17 May 1856.
' Lay Subs. R. ,%.
5 Home Counties Mag. vi, 185.
1 Ibid. ' Ibid.
" W. Shrimpton, Notes an a Decayed Needle-land,
9-27. • Ibid.
needles had been made, a journey to London
was undertaken by one of the more important
manufacturers. He took from seven to ten days,
going by the stage-coach from Oxford. The
goods had been first conveyed to Tetsworth,
where the coach was met and the needle-maker
was accompanied by armed men for his protection.
This was more especially needed on the return
journey, when he bought back a considerable
sum of money for the wages of the workmen.
A stock of wire was also brought back, part
payment for the needles often being made in
wire, which was difficult to procure direct from
Birmingham. In 1736, the needles were chiefly
made in the living rooms of the workers, but
later factories were built, one of which is still
standing in the village of Long Crendon.10
At the beginning of the igth century the
chief manufacturers bore the names of Harris,
Shrimpton and Johnson.11 The processes em-
ployed were extremely primitive ; everything
was done by hand labour, no stamps were used,
and the methods of pointing made that part of
the trade at least very injurious to the health of
needle-makers. The fame of Redditch needles
was beginning to grow and the Long Crendon
manufacturers felt the pressure of competition
in the market. They seem to have taken no
steps, however, to meet it or to improve their
methods. They never employed the water-
power at Notley Mill and were very late in
introducing machinery of any kind. In some
ways the position of Redditch gave it an
advantage over Long Crendon, particularly from
being near Birmingham, but the Shrimptons
had many opportunities of improving their
trade, of which they never took advantage.
London merchants offered money so that new
machinery might be set up and the workshops
improved, but the Crendon manufacturers had
been so long without encountering competition
that they were utterly unprepared to meet the
new conditions of the industry. They seem to
" Home Counties Mag. vi, 1 84.
" Shrimpton, Notes on a Decayed Needle-land, 14.
127
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
have given far more attention to all the pastimes
of the countryside, bull-baiting, cock-fighting
and boxing, than to their business. Hence the
Long Crendon needle-trade gradually died out
and the trade in sewing needles was practically
lost.
Several makers made a speciality of large
needles, however ; sail and packing and netting
needles were made in considerable quantities, and
a revival of the trade took place about 1848.
A John Harris had set up for himself and was
more energetic in business than others ; machinery
was also introduced by him and some of the
Shrimptons. A London firm, Kirby Beard & Co.,
started a factory at Crendon, where they had
long been customers of the needle-makers. The
lack of railway communication, however, proved
fatal to their undertaking, and in 1862 they
moved to Redditch, taking with them four-fifths
of the needle-makers. Almost immediately
afterwards the railway was opened to Thame,
but it was too late to affect the manufacture at
Long Crendon, and even the trade of large
needles was obtained by the Redditch makers.
Emigration had, however, been going on slowly
for many years; as early as 1824, Jonas
Shrimpton journeyed to Alcester, Studley, and
Redditch to observe the state of the manufacture
there. He advised the Crendon makers to
bestir themselves, but nothing, as has been said,
was done, and some of the younger men
migrated in the next few years. Even in 1861,
while Kirby Beard & Go's, factory was still open,
the population of the village was declining, the
cause being migration of the needle-makers to
seek work in other parts of the country.12
TEXTILE INDUSTRIES
A considerable amount of wool was grown
in Buckinghamshire as early as the I3th cen-
tury and consequently many men were engaged
in the wool trade. The wool grown by the
monks at Biddlesden, Ankerwyke, and Notley is
mentioned by Pegolotti.1 Buckingham was a
staple town for wool in the time of Edward III,
till the staple was removed to Calais. It was
then amongst the towns which petitioned Parlia-
ment in 1525 for relief, their trade having been
destroyed.1* In the xyth century Buckingham
still seems to have been a centre of the trade, and
possessed both a wool hall and wool market, the
profits belonging to Christ's Hospital, founded by
Queen Elizabeth.2 In 1731, these profits only
amounted to ^5 a year.3 A wool fair was also
held at Great Marlow, but it fell into disuse in
the first half of the i gth century.
Wool merchants in the i6th century were,
however, sternly repressed, no individual being
allowed to buy more wool than he could weave
himself. In 1577 the ' broggers' of wool were
bound over in £100 apiece, 'that neither they
nor their heirs shall at any time hereafter buy or
bargain any manner of wools that grow or
hath grown within the county of Buckingham,
but only such quantity of wools as they by
themselves or their apprentices shall yearly make
in his own mansion house.' * The cloth trade
never assumed very large proportions in the
county, but a certain amount of weaving and
fulling was done, presumably for local use.
11 Pop. Ret. 1 86 1.
1 Cunningham, The Growth of Engl. Indus, and
Commerce, i, 629.
la Browne Willis, Hist, and Antiq. of the Town, Hund.
and Deanery of Buckingham (1755), 46.
1 Ibid. 86. " Ibid.
4 S.P. Dom. Eliz. cxv, 28.
Early in the I4th century the governing body
of the borough of Wycombe tried to attract the
trade to their town by remitting a tax on looms.6
The effort seems to have been successful, and the
records of the borough contain many orders with
regard to weaving, fulling and dyeing.8 These
trades were gradually limited to the burgesses of
the borough, foreigners being forbidden to carry
them on without making a heavy payment.
Even amongst the town craftsmen there were
strict rules for their government.7 Besides ap-
prenticeship rules, no one man might carry on
more than one of the three trades at the same
time.8 Early in the I7th century foreign
craftsmen paid 6d. for every loom working, but
how often the fine was to be paid was not
specified. The increasing strictness of these
orders was probably due to the failing condition
of the cloth trade. In 1623 this was commented
on by the Justices of the Peace and the Mayor
of Wycombe 9 and the poor in the town suffered
a great deal of misery.
The fullers seem to have suffered even earlier
from the loss of their trade. Various fulling
mills are mentioned in accounts of the bailiffs of
manors in the I4th and I5th centuries,10 but in
the following century, for instance, at Taplow,
when the mills were rebuilt in the reign of
Henry VIII, certain old fulling-mill stock was
found. Many years later a witness, in an inquisi-
tion taken in 1613 about these mills, suggested
that the name of an eyot or island in the Thames
called ' Tenter Eight ' took its name from the
Ibid.
6 Wycombe Borough Records.
• Ibid. 7 Ibid.
9 S.P. Dom. Jas. I, cxlii, 44.
10 Mins. Accts. bdle. 761, no. 4 ; bdle 763, no. 9 ;
bdle. 653, no. 10565 ; bdle. 654, no. 10577 >
bdle. 655, no. 10597.
128
INDUSTRIES
tentering of cloth.11 Moreover, at Newport
Pagnell a fulling-mill had existed at one time,
but it had been converted into a grist mill before
1623. Weaving was still a trade of the town,
since George Fynnall, a weaver, gave evidence
about the mills at that date.u At High
Wycombe a fulling-mill, known as Gosham's
mill, was working at this time, and was in the
hands of a family of the name of Raunce.13
Buckinghamshire sheep and rams were famous
throughout the I7th century, but more for their
size than their wool,14 and the local cloth trade
seems to have gradually disappeared. Sacking
was also manufactured in the ijth century.
The paupers in the workhouse at Aylesbury 1§
were mainly employed in spinning hemp. Their
yarn was either sold or sent to the weavers, and
afterwards the overseers of the poor sold the
manufactured article." Sacking was probably
made throughout the i8th century, but in
1831," only forty men were employed in
making mats and sacking.
Silk-weaving was carried on in Buckingham-
shire for some years during the igth century.
A large mill was established at Tring in 1824 by
Mr. William Kaye of Tring Park.18 It was first
worked by Mr. Joseph Kaye, but he afterwards
moved to Manchester. On his death the Lan-
cashire factory was given up and his manager
RobertNixon was thus thrown out of employment.
He determined to set up a silk-mill at Aylesbury
in connexion with the Tring mill and further,
made an agreement with the Aylesbury overseers,
who were in great need of employment for the
parish paupers in the workhouse. The numbers
there were rapidly increasing, and the decline of
the lace trade left the overseers with no means of
giving them work. The latter undertook to
build a silk factory on part of the workhouse
" Exch. Dep. by Com. East. 10 Jas. I, no. 14.
" Exch. Spec. Com. no. 3596.
11 Chan. Inq. p.m. (S«r. 2), ccclxxxvi, no. 100.
14 Fuller, Worthies of England (ed. Nuttall), 193.
'* Aylcsbury Overseers' Acct w Ibid.
17 Pop. Ret. 1831, i, 34.
" Gibbs, Hiit, of AyUsburj, 624.
premises in Oxford Road, and to spend £200 on
it, Nixon promising on his part not to employ
any hands but paupers chargeable on Aylesbury
parish. Forty looms were set up in 1830, but
probably women were employed for the most
part, since in 1831 " there were only 30 male
silk weavers in the county. The mill afterwards
passed into the hands of Messrs. Evans, who had
for many years worked the Tring mill.10
They first bought part of the workhouse premises
in 1844, and in 1859, the original parish mill.
Soon afterwards 2OO hands, mostly girls, were
employed, and steam-power had been introduced.
In 1885 there were 70 steam looms at the Ayles-
bury mill. The actual weaving was the only
process carried on there, none of the earlier pro-
cesses being undertaken.
Branches of the Tring and Aylesbury mill were
set up near the latter town. At Waddesdon a
mill was established in 1843. It stood in the
middle of the village, and in 1862 employed some
40 women, but only hand-looms were used. A
smaller mill was also worked at Whitchurch.11
Silk was manufactured at Wyrardisbury mill n
about the time that the Aylesbury mill was estab-
lished, while silk and shawl printing was carried on
at the neighbouring town of Horton. The latter
works were in the hands of Messrs. Tippets & Co.,
who employed about 60 persons, but in 1859 a
decline of trade made them close their works, and
the buildings and stock were sold by auction.
Cotton mills also existed in Buckinghamshire.^
the close of the i8th century. At Iver and Tap-
low visitors were appointed by the justices of the
peace in 1802 under an Act of 42 Geo III to
inspect the cotton mills there.88 At Amersham
another cotton factory was working in 1825 ; I4 it
employed many of the inhabitants but no cotton
weavers are returned in the census of 1831."
"Pop. Ret. 1831, i, 34.
" Gibbs, Hut. of Aylesburj, 624.
" Sheahan, Hist, and Tofog. of Bucks. 429, 772.
n Gyll, Hut. ofWrajsbury, 72, 198.
** Quarter Sessions Records, 1802.
" Pinnock, Hist, and Tofog. of Engl. i, 25.
» Pop. Ret. 1831,1,34.
129
'7
FORESTRY
I
authentic history of the woods of
Buckinghamshire ' may be said to
begin with the Domesday Survey,
in which the general distribution of
woods throughout the county is
strikingly manifested. In this county the com-
missioners estimated the extent of the woodlands
by certifying how many swine could be sus-
tained ori its acorns and beech mast, and it
is quite obvious from these returns that con-
siderable woods were to be found in every
direction. Taking the larger woods, which were
sufficiently extensive to support 500 swine or
upwards, we find they run as follows : — Wen-
dover, 2,OOO ; Chesham, 1,600 ; Lillingstone,
1,200 ; Marlow and Princes Risborough, 1,000
each ; Oakley, 806 ; Marsworth and Iver, 800
each ; Taplow, 700 ; Chalfont St. Peter, Burn-
ham, Farnham, and Chalfont St. Giles, 600 each ;
and Wraysbury, High Wycombe, Stoke Poges,
Missenden, and Hampden, 500 each. These
places are to be found north, south, east, and
west, and in the centre of the county. The
swine-feeding powers of the woods throughout
Domesday are almost invariably expressed in round
numbers. There is however a curious exception
to the rule in this county. The woodland of
Akeley is said to have found sustenance for 806
swine (octingentis porch et vj) ; such an entry as
this is a corroboration of the theory that the
extant Domesday is a condensed summary of the
actual returns, and that the original detailed
return has in this case been accidentally retained.
There are two references to the royal forest of
Bernwood. Brill (Erunhelle\ on the confines of
Oxfordshire, is named as a manor of King
Edward's; under this manor jCi2 is entered as
the annual issue of the forest. Oakley was in
the same forest, and it is entered that the wood-
land would feed 200 swine, 'save that it is the
king's park in which it lies.'
At Long Crendon, adjoining Oakley and
Brill, Walter Giffard had a park for beasts of
venery (parcus bestiarum silvaticarum\ which is a
truer forest translation than beasts of the chase.
1 Camden considered that the very name Buckingham
meant the beechen village, owing to the number and
•ize of its beech trees, from boccen or buecen, derived
from bat, a beech tree. Although this derivation has
been doubted by Lysons and Lipscombe, its accuracy
is still maintained by several modern etymologists.
The four beasts of venery, the hart, wolf, wild
boar, and hare, were sy/vestres, that is, they spent
their days in the woods, and were taken by what
was considered true hunting, being tracked or
roused by the lymers and lymer hounds (corre-
sponding to the modern tufters of the Devon
and Somerset Staghounds), and afterwards pur-
sued by the pack. The beasts of the chase were
termed campestres, that is, they were found in the
open country by day and therefore required none
of the niceties of tracking and harbouring in
thicket and coverts, but were roused straight away
by the hounds ; these were the fallow and roe
deer, with the fox and martin.*
So far as Buckinghamshire was concerned with
royal forests the position was distinctly peculiar.
The shire had no large forest of its own entirely
within its bounds, but it shared portions of four
distinct forests with adjacent counties, namely
Windsor, Whittlewood, Salcey, and Bernwood.
The smallest of these shares was that of
Windsor in the south of the county. Parts of
the parishes of Datchet, Langley Marish, Slough,
and Eton, on the Bucks side of the Thames,
immediately opposite Windsor and the present
Home Park, were for many generations considered
part of Windsor Forest. At the present day
293 acres of meadow and other land in Datchet,
abutting on the Thames, are Crown lands, as well
as upwards of 2OO acres at Eton.
The forest of Whittlewood lay chiefly in
Northamptonshire, but a considerable section
overlapped into the north-western district of
Buckinghamshire, including the parishes of Lil-
lingstone Lovell, Lillingstone Dayrell, and parts
of Biddlesden, Akeley, and Stowe. All that
remained of Whittlewood Forest in this county
in 1792 was 220 acres in Lillingstone Dayrell,
which was included in Wakefield Walk. It was
not until August 4, 1853, that the much-re-
stricted area of old Whittlewood Forest ceased
to exist. On that day An Act far Disafforesting
the Forest of JVhittltwood became law ; the deer
were destroyed or removed, and the forest officers
discharged.
Salcey, another of the royal forests of North-
amptonshire, in the south-east of that county,
1 Cox, Royal Foreiti, 61—3. ManwooJ, so continu-
ously cited by writers on old hunting, has strangely
blundered in his misleading lists as to legal beasts of
the forest and the chase.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
also protruded into Buckinghamshire, extending
in old days over the whole of the parish of
Hanslope as well as in the adjacent parts. Han-
slope gave its name to one of the walks of this
old forest. In 1825 An Act for Dividing, Allot-
ting and Inclosing the Forest of Salcey, in the
Counties of Northampton and Buckingham, was
passed.
The fourth of the Buckinghamshire forests,
that of Bernwood, was by far the most important
so far as this county was concerned. Bernwood
Forest stretched out far into Oxfordshire, em-
bracing the subsidiary forest stretches of Shotover
and Stowood, and approaching almost to the very
walls of Oxford by way of Headington. But
the larger section of Bernwood Forest as well as
the centre of its government was always in
Buckinghamshire. In that county the consider-
able projection, about the centre of the western
border, which included the parishes of Boarstall,
Brill, Oakley, Worminghall, Long Crendon,
Ashendon, Chilton, Dorton, Ludgershall, and
Wotton Underwood, were always within Bern-
wood Forest ; whilst for a long time it extended
much further north to the Claydons, as well as
further to the centre or east. Its exact boundaries
cannot readily be determined, they fluctuated
much at different periods, some of the old
perambulations are difficult to decipher, and the
identification of several of the places named as
bounds is peculiarly difficult.
The earlier Norman kings added largely to the
area of Bernwood Forest on the Buckingham-
shire side, until a considerable section of the
county was subject to the severity of the forest
laws. By the Forest Charter granted at the
opening of the reign of Henry III, it was pro-
vided that all forests which Henry II had af-
forested should be viewed by good and lawful
men, and that all that had been made forest,
other than royal demesne, since his coronation,
was forthwith to be disafforested. In accordance
with this charter special perambulations were
ordered to be made by not less than twelve
knights elected for that purpose before March,
1224-5.
There seems to have been some special delay
in the case of Buckinghamshire, or else disputes
caused the perambulations to be ere long repeated ;
for there is a verdict of twenty-four knights
extant of 1228 de metis foreste in Com. Buc.
This perambulation, starting from a ford over the
Thame, went as far north as Steeple Claydon, and
much was stated to have never before been con-
. sidered forest. On the back of this small docu-
ment appear the names of the twenty-four
knights, including Robert Fitzalan, Walter de
Fulebrot, Ralph Fitzjohn and Ralph de Lang-
port.4
There is also extant at the Record Office a
4 Misc. Chan. Forest Proc. bdle. 1 1, file I, Nos. 14,
15. These documents are in part illegible.
perambulation of the year 1298, which was
undertaken in the presence of John FitzNeal,
the chief forester or warden, of four foresters, of
four verderers, of two elected knights, and of two
Crown commissioners. The following is a careful
English rendering of this perambulation, but it is
difficult to follow. The stream called the Yhyst
may be identical with the one now called the
Ray, which crossed into Oxfordshire to the west
of Grendon Underwood : —
Imprimis to wit at a certain stream which is called
Yhyst and therefrom going up towards Hethenaburgh
and so to Stodfolddem and so from thence to Pedyngton
[Piddington] moore and so stretching to a certain place
called le Dedequene beyond the lord King's wood,
[Kingswood] and so going up through Lotegershale
[Ludgershall] Hay between the wood of the King's
demesne and Lotegershele Wood as far as Colleputtes
And so from thence to the Brechs and so from thence
going down to the stream to Brechehurne And so to
Coppedhegge and then proceeding outside the haye to
Todeleshall corner And from thence between the
King's wood and the wood of Richard Grenoile de
Wotton to Siketon as far as Colhurch on the east
And so proceeding by the aforesaid wood to War-
borughwell Books (?) And from thence to Tremeren
and so to Wolvesthorpe and so to Dreyhurst And
from thence through the stream to Phippenhoohurne
and so to Aylyenewellesture and from thence to
Whithorn and so across the Quareinte which is called
Burnegrove to Brehull [Brill] forks And from thence
to Morlesmede and so to Aysshegh without the mes-
suage of Walter de Byllyndon And so direct through
Alkedonemersh to Apcrofte and thence by the Porte-
weye to Stamford And so between Wormenhael
[Worminghall] Field to le Wykehouse And from
thence to Gulpesmede And so by the ridge of
Delefield to le Spanne And so to Stonyhurstend
And so from thence to Honybrugge and from thence
to Stonyhurstende and from thence to Hildesle and
from thence to Ffoulesle and then to Okelyngoke
through the stream to Waterfall in Smythedene And
from thence to South Wellredy And thence to
Southwell and thence to Halsadetonge and so to
Gashale and then to Grymes dich and so to Stony-
crouch and thence to Merlakebrugge And so always
by the bounds in the counties of Bucks and Oxon to
the aforesaid stream of Yhyst.'
It has been supposed that the name Bernwood
had relation to Bernulph, the successor of
Kenulph and grandson of King Offa, but this,
as Lipscombe remarks, is mere conjecture.
There is, however, no doubt that it was an
extensive and well-wooded forest tract that per-
tained to the Saxon monarchy for a long time
previous to the Norman Conquest. Brill, which
was within the confines of Buckinghamshire,
was a royal manor of importance in Saxon times,
and said to have been an occasional residence of
the Confessor. A royal precept of Henry I
(1109-11) relative to the canons of Gloucester
is dated from Brill.6
5 Exch. Accts. Forest Proc. K.R. bdle. i, No. 8.
6 Royal Chart. Duchy of Lane. No. z.
132
FORESTRY
The place is mentioned in grants of Stephen
and Matilda, and we know from charters that
Henry II was sojourning here in 1160, 1162,
and 1177. King John was at Brill on
23 October, 1205, and also kept the following
Christmas at the same royal seat.7 Henry III
stayed here in 1224 and on several occasions
afterwards ; and Edward I was at Brill yearly
from 1273 to I28i, and again in 1293.*
The Pipe Rolls of 1 169-70 record £31 4*. ^d.
from the wastes, assarts, and pleas of the forest
of Buckinghamshire, but in the following year
only 57*. icd. In 1172-3 the amount was
551. Sd. Only a mark was entered for the
forest in 1173-4 and 1174-5, and but half a
mark in 1176-7.* The very large amount
entered in 1169-70 probably arose from the
Pleas of the Forest before justices being held
in that year.
In the first year of Richard I the sheriff of
Buckinghamshire was indebted in the sum of
24*. (>d. for the wastes, assarts, pleas, and pur-
prestures of the forest of Buckinghamshire.
Mention is made at the same time of Ralph the
forester.10
By the forest of Buckinghamshire, in these
Pipe Roll entries, is evidently meant the Buck-
inghamshire division of Bernwood Forest, which
was usually described in the thirteenth century
as the forest of Brill.
In considering the question of the administra-
tion of the ancient royal forests of Buckingham-
shire, however briefly, it seems essential to
recollect that the use of the term ' forest ' as
applicable to a great wood is a comparatively
modern custom. Such a use came into fairly
general adoption in Elizabethan days, but origin-
ally and for several centuries the English word
* forest ' meant a waste tract of country reserved
for royal sport, and hence placed under special
laws and restrictions. Within the forest of
Bernwood or Brill there were many great woods
and thickets of undergrowth, far more, doubt-
less, than would be formed on such forests as
Dartmoor, Exmoor, or the High Peak, but there
would certainly be a considerable share of open
ground and heaths. Within this area, although
there would be a good deal of private property,
all such inclosures as were of sufficient height to
exclude the deer, did they desire to enter, were
forbidden, save under special licence. The
owners of woods that were in private hands
were bound to appoint woodwards, who were
to a great extent foresters of the king, for they
were sworn to arrest venison trespassers. Though
the owners of such woods could usually take
freely all wood they might require for their own
use, they could not fell to any considerable
' Lipscombe, Bueks, \, 97-8.
* Close and Pat. R. passim.
1 Pipe K. Hen. II (Pipe R. Soc.).
" Magn. Rot. Pip. 35, 37.
extent, or sell wood, or burn charcoal, or do any-
thing that might be prejudicial to the king's
deer, without a licence.
The administration of a forest was partly
national and partly local. From time to time,
often at prolonged intervals, forest justices of the
crown came round to hold Pleas of the Forest
for inquiring into privilege claims, for exacting
fines for assarts and purprestures (the terms for
illegal inclosures or encroachments), and for
punishing trespasses against venison and vert.
Vert was a term for which the English form
of ' green hue ' was occasionally used, implying
all damage to trees, underwood, and forest
herbage. Local courts were also held at regular
and frequent intervals, when the minor vert
offences were dealt with, including illicit agist-
ment or feeding of cattle or pigs, and stray
animals ; and venison trespasses were enrolled,
and the commitment of offenders to prison oc-
casionally arranged. Over these local swain-
mote or attachment courts, the crown-appointed
warden or chief forester presided, with the
verdcrers (usually four in number) as assessors.
These were men of position elected in the
county court; they had no fees, but were entitled
to certain perquisites both of vert and venison.
The foresters were those who had charge over
different sections or walks of the forest, and it
was their duty to present offenders at the courts,
and also under certain circumstances they were
expected instantly to arrest venison trespassers or
hunters and to convey them to prison. The
delinquents could, however, generally obtain
liberty without much difficulty on sufficient
bail from either the particular justice of the
forest or direct from the crown. They were
bound over to appear before the next eyre of the
justices of Forest Pleas ; but the delay was so
great in holding these eyres that not a few
offenders were usually dead before their case
came to trial. By the Forest Charter no one
could for any forest offence be imprisoned for
more than a year and a day.11
Robert de Drewes was entrusted with the
charge of the royal manor of Brill, at pleasure,
in 1217, together with the forest pertaining to
the manor."
When the great storm of 1222 occurred
which devastated the woods throughout England
and caused the usual customs as to windfallen
timber in royal forests to be held in abeyance,
instructions as to the disposal of the cablish were
forwarded to the vcrderers and foresters of the
11 It feems best to give this summary of forest pro-
cedure to help towards the understanding of some of
the extracts here cited ; those who desire to gain a
better understanding of the various processes and the
intricacy of administration are referred to Turner,
Select Pitas oftke Foreit (Selden Soc.), or to the more
popular Cox, Royal Forests.
11 Pat. 2 Hen. Ill, m. II.
'33
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
forest of Brehull (Brill). The long list of forest
officials to whom like communications were
made does not include any other reference to
Buckinghamshire.13
In 1219 the crown ordered general inquisi-
tions to be held throughout England as to the
assarts or inclosures that had been made within
royal forests. These orders for Buckingham-
shire were addressed to the sheriff, verderers, and
foresters, who were to meet at Buckingham ;
the crown named four inquisitors, Simon de
Litlinton, Walter de la Haye, Miles Neirnut,
and Richard de Stokes, and with them was
associated Hugh de Baton as clerk.14
The sheriff of Buckinghamshire received the
royal mandate, in 1229, to issue summons for
a regard of the forests of the county, and to see
to the election of regarders in the place of those
who had died or were infirm, so that there
might be the full complement of twelve in each
regard. For the same year Brian de Insula was
appointed justice of the forest for Buckingham-
shire and several other shires.16
Another order for holding a regard was issued
in 1235, to prepare for the coming of the justice
of the forest. The foresters were to swear to
bring twelve knights elected in their bailiwick
to view every kind of trespass, as expressed in
the chapters of the Regard.16
Ranulf Brito, in 1229, obtained letters patent
authorizing him to hunt for life with his dogs
the hare and the fox, without any interference
whatsoever from foresters or their servants,
through the whole royal forest in the bailiwick
of Hugh de Neville, in the counties of
Buckingham and Northampton.17
William son of Walter de Bruhull was
pardoned by the king, in 1232, for the trespass
of skinning a deer that he found dead in this
forest ; Peter de Rivallis received orders to
release him from prison.18
In 1234 John de Neville, the bailiff of the
forests between the bridges of Stamford and
Oxford, was ordered by the king to kill, salt,
and make bacon of the pannage pigs of Brill
and other forests of Huntingdonshire and North-
amptonshire, and to take ward of it for the king's
use.19
Various royal gifts out of the forest of Brill
are entered on the Close Rolls of Henry III.
Thus in 1228 William de Wurdie, servant of
Walter de Clifford, was permitted to take forty
cartloads of dry brushwood out of the forest of
11 Pat. 7 Hen. Ill, m. 6.
14 Ibid. 3 Hen. Ill, m. 4 d.
16 Ibid, i 3 Hen. Ill, m. 2, 9 d. As to regarders, and
the full and independent reports they were expected
to draw up every year, see Cox, Royal Forests, IO,
1 1 , &c.
16 Pat. 19 Hen. Ill, m. n d.
ir Close, 14 Hen. Ill, m. 20.
18 Ibid. 1 8 Hen. Ill, m. 3.
19 Ibid. 1 8 Hen. Ill, m. 4.
Brill, for Walter's hearth. In the same year
King John's grant to the canons of Nutley to
use two carts, at pleasure, fetching fuel wood
from Bernwood Forest, was renewed by Henry
III and again confirmed in I23O.20 The Friars
Minor of Oxford received a royal gift from this
forest, in January, 1231, of thirteen leafless
oaks.21 Later in the same year Walter de
Clifford obtained a considerable gift of building
timber from the same forest.22
The brethren of the hospital of St. John-
without-Oxford obtained five oaks from Brill
Forest, together with another five from Shotover
Forest, in February, 1232, for the building of
their hospital, and in July of the same year ten
tie-beams for the hospital chapel to be taken
wherever they were most suitable from either
of these forests.23 In 1234 the abbot of Oseney
was granted twenty oaks from Brill towards the
building of his church, and the lepers of Walling-
ford an oak for making shingles to roof their
chapel.24
Peter de Rivallis, as warden of the forest, was
ordered in 1233 to provide the honest men of
Oxford with 100 Brill oaks, to be taken where
they would be least missed, for building the
turrets of the walls round the city of Oxford,
and for making planks for the same.25
In the following year there is a particularly
interesting entry on the Close Rolls relative to
the timber of this forest. John de Neville
received the royal mandate to supply the iacrist
of Abingdon Abbey with four oaks for making a
certain cross.86
Royal gifts of venison were not infrequent.
In 1229 Hugh de Neville, forest justice, was
ordered to allow Drogo de Trubleville a buck
out of Brill Forest and like gifts to Philippa, the
wife of William de Symilly, Drogo's niece, and
to Thomas Basset.''7 In September of the same
year, the king sent Alan de Neville and Roger
de Stopham, with their running dogs, to hunt
fallow deer in Brill Forest, and instructed
John de la Hoes, the forester, to sanction
them.28 Later in the same year Thomas Basset
received three does out of this forest, and Gilbert
Marshall four does.29 In 1230 a royal gift was
made to Hugh de Plesset of two does,30 and in
1231 two bucks were given to Robert de
Curtenay.31 In the following year John the
Fool and Philip his companion, royal huntsmen,
10 Close, 1 2 Hen. Ill, m. 6.
"Ibid. 15 Hen. Ill, m. 19.
" Ibid.
13 Ibid. 16 Hen. Ill, mm. 14, 7.
"Ibid. 17 Hen. Ill, mm. 8, 7.
"Ibid. 17 Hen. Ill, m. 2.
16 Ibid. 1 8 Hen. Ill, m. 10.
"Ibid. 13 Hen. Ill, mm. 10, 6.
* Ibid. m. 4.
Ibid. 14 Hen. Ill, pt. i, mm. 23, 22.
29
30 Ibid. m. 13.
"Ibid. 15 Hen. Ill, m. 12.
FORESTRY
were dispatched to Brill Forest to take with
their dogs two or three red deer, against the
coming of the king to Woodstock,1* while in
September, 1233, Roger de Quincy was granted
ten live bucks and does from this forest towards
stocking his park at Chinnor.*1
Pleas of the Forest for the county of Bucking-
ham were held at Buckingham on Monday after the
feast of St. Mark, 1 255, before William le Bretun
and three other justices. These pleas were partly
concerned with trespasses committed in the
small section of the Northamptonshire forest of
Whittlewood that came over the border into
Buckinghamshire, but more especially with the
Buckinghamshire division of Bernwood Forest,
usually known as the forest of Brill. Con-
sequently the eyre had to be attended by both sets
of forest ministers.84
One of the cases of presentment from Whittle-
wood Forest involved the question of the cruel
custom ofexpeditating or lawing the dogs within
a forest area, so as to hinder them from chasing
the deer. By the forest law of Henry II this
mutilation was only done to mastiffs, but it
gradually came about that it was applied to all
dogs. The Forest Charter laid down that a
view of the lawing of dogs in the forest was to
be held every third year, and a fine of 31. paid
for each found unlawed. This lawing consisted
in cutting off the three claws of the forefoot,
leaving only the ball. The right to have un-
lawed dogs within a forest was occasionally
granted by the crown to persons of position.
Thus, the bishop of London, the dean and chap-
ter of St. Paul's, and the canons of Waltham
held grants exempting their house dogs in Essex
Forest ; whilst the earl of Arundel and other lay-
men had complete exemption. Two mastiffs
belonging to Simon de Pateshull were found in a
wood at Heyburne, belonging to Simon, worrying
a brocket (a hart of the second year) which had
been wounded in the right haunch. He was
charged at the eyre not only with this offence,
but with the unlawed condition of his mastiffs.
Simon, however, was able to put in a chartered
exemption from dog-lawing, but he was fined
two marks for the conduct of his mastiffs.
Some of the cases considered at this eyre went
back as far as 1 248. Three delinquents were
charged with having hunted in that year in the
wood of Stockholt, in Whittlewood Forest, with
bows and arrows, and with resisting the riding
foresters who sought to attach them. In the
same year, Alexander, chaplain of Wotton, and
two men with him who escaped and whose
names were unknown, committed a forest offence
in Bernwood. When the justices in eyre came
round, seven years later, Alexander, who was on
bail, was dead ; a return had to be made of his chat-
" Close, 1 6 Hen. Ill, mm. I 5, 7, 6.
a Ibid. 17 Hen. Ill, mm. 1 1, 9, 3.
14 Exch. Accti. Forest Proc. T.R. 251.
tels, which were only worth lit. yl.t with
an unvalued burse containing relics. Amongst
other interesting cases may be mentioned that of
Hugh de Molond in 1249, who was found going
out of the forest with a bow, which he handed
to his brother Richard. The foresters found at
his house a bow and four barbed arrows. Hugh
and Richard were both imprisoned and bailed ;
the justices fined the former a mark and the
latter half a mark.
At this Buckingham eyre it was stated that
John Durant, woodward of Roger de Wotton of
his wood of Stockholt, had been presented by
his lord before Robert Basset, the steward of the
forest ; and afterwards presented by his lord
before Edward de Bosco, forest justice, at Selves-
ton. William Curtis, woodward of Simon de
Sancto Licio for his part of the wood of West-
bury, had been presented by his lord before the
forest steward, and afterwards presented and
sworn before Hugh of Goldingham, the forest
justice. Walter de Clanfield, woodward of
James le Savage for his part of the wood of
Westbury, had also been presented and sworn in
like manner.*4
In 1266 an inquisition was held at Hartley,
in Bernwood Forest, as to the bailiwick of John,
the son of Neal, which he held in that forest
by hereditary right (forester in fee of Boarstall), as
the king wished to be certified as to his rights and
customs and services. The jury testified that he
held by hereditary right the bailiwick from Stony-
ford as far as a certain water called the Burne,
running between Steeple Claydon and Padbury ;
that he had rights of cheminage or way-leave,
of after-pannage, of all rents, of dead woods and
of the loppings and roots of all trees given or
sold or taken for his own use by the king. Two
other rights are sufficiently interesting to be set
forth as Englished by Mr. Turner : —
He has and he ought of hereditary right to have
throughout the aforesaid bailiwick trees felled by the
wind, which is called cablish, and that in the form
underwritten, to wit, that if the wind fells ten trees
in one night and one day, the lord king will have
them all ; but if the wind fells less than ten tree* in
one night and one day, the aforesaid John will have
them all.
Also this same John has of right all attachments
and issues of attachments made of small thorns, to
wit, of such a thorn as cannot be perforated by an
auger (tarrera) which is called ' Restnauegar.'
The meaning of this last clause is that the
undergrowth of small thorns was John's per-
quisite, and that the question of what was small
and what was large was tested by whether the
thorn stem was sufficiently large to be pierced by
a standard auger.
The last clause of the verdict of this inquest
was to the effect that John had to guard this
u See Turner, Select Pleat of tbt Foreit (Selden
Soc.), Ixviii.
'35
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
forest bailiwick (that is to find and pay the under-
forester) in return for these privileges and also to
make an annual payment to the king of 4Cw.36
In 1280 there was an inquisition as to a night
trespass in Bernwood Forest, Buckinghamshire,
when the foresters took and imprisoned a com-
pany of thirteen. The foresters swore that one
of the number, Robert Cripelard, was engaged
in placing a snare, formed of a single cord ; but
the jury held that Robert was not culpable.37
In connexion with the Forest Pleas for Buck-
inghamshire, lists were drawn up in 1286 and
1287 of quittance of the common summons.
Among those whose presence at the eyres was
thus excused by the crown, although free tenants
or holding privileges within the royal forests of
the county, were the abbess of Godstow, the
abbess of Barking, the bishop of Coventry and
Lichfield, the priors of Merton and La Grave,
the abbot ofOseney, the prior general of St. John
of Jerusalem, the master of the hospital of St.
John-without-Oxford, and the earls of Cornwall,
Hereford, and Surrey.38
The prison for trespassers in the whole forest
of Bernwood was at Brill. In February, 1277,
John Fitzneal, the warden of the forest, was
ordered to deliver Peter le Provost and his son
John, imprisoned at Brill for forest trespass, in
bail to twelve men pledged to deliver him before
the justices of Forest Pleas when next they came
to those parts. In the following May the same
warden received a like mandate from the crown
to release in a similar manner Hugh Magot and
his son Humphrey from imprisonment at Brill.'9
In 1292 Elias de Hauvill, steward of Bern-
wood Forest, received the crown mandate to
release on bail, from the prison at Brill, William
de Boyton and seven others, all confined there
for forest trespasses.40
In the same year Aumary de St. Amando,
king's yeoman, obtained licence by letters patent
to hunt the fox, hare, badger, and cat, with his
own dogs, throughout the forests of Bucking-
hamshire, except during the fence month, so
that he did not take great game or course in
warrens.41
Occasionally in the forests of this county, as
elsewhere, trespassers obtained immediate pardon
from the crown. Thus, in 1294, the justices
next in eyre for Forest Pleas in the county
of Buckingham received royal orders not to
molest James de la Plaunche for the trespass he
was said to have committed in taking harts and
hinds, as well as bucks and does, in the Bucking-
hamshire portion of Salcey Forest without the
king's licence, as the king had pardoned him the
"Inq. p.m. 50 Hen. Ill, No. 25.
" Misc. Chan. Forest Proc. bdle. n, file 3 (22).
18 Close, 1 4 Edw. I, m. 8 d. ; 15 Edw. I, m. 5 d.
" Ibid. 5 Edw. I, mm. 1 1, 8.
40 Ibid. 20 Edw. I, m. 9.
41 Pat. 20 Edw. I, m. 10.
136
trespass. A like letter was directed to the
justices next in eyre for the county of North-
ampton.42
In October 1297 the sheriff of Buckingham-
shire received the king's mandate to the effect
that he desired the late king's Forest Charter to
be observed inviolable in all its articles, and
he had therefore appointed Adam Gurdon and
William de Mortuo Mari, together with two of
the most discreet of the knights of the county,
to cause a perambulation to be made, in the
presence of the foresters and verderers, to con-
firm the perambulations of the late reign which
had not been disputed. The sheriff was ordered
to summon all the knights of the county to meet
Adam and William, and from their number to
appoint two successors.43
When the perambulation of Whittlewood
Forest was shortly afterwards undertaken, Roger
le Brabazon and Ralph de Hengham took a sore
(a buck of the fourth year) and three does in the
Buckinghamshire part of the forest. Letters
close were, however, addressed by the crown
to the justices next in eyre for Pleas of the
Forest, both of the counties of Buckingham
and Northampton, ordering them not to molest
or aggrieve Roger and Ralph, as they and the
others assigned by the king to make the perambu-
lation took them by his licence in the course of
making the perambulation.44
Soon after the accession of Edward III, the
sheriff of Buckinghamshire was ordered to take
anew in his county court the oaths of the
verderers of Bernwood Forest, who had been
elected in the late king's lifetime, to inquire
into their qualifications and to cause others to
be elected in the place of those who might be
insufficiently qualified.48
An inquisition was held at Brill in 1363,
before William of Wykeham,46 as to the pasture
rights of the tenants of Brill, Boarstall, and
Oakley, when it was held that they had rights
of depasturing their cattle through the whole
forest, save in the haye (or park) of Ixhull,
without molestation except in the fence month.
In the following year an inquisition was held at
Headington, before Peter Atte Wood, deputy of
William of Wykeham, as to the condition of the
whole forest of Bernwood.4'
There is an original inquisition as to the state
of the Buckinghamshire division of Bernwood
Forest at the Public Record Office, held in the
year 1377, with the rows of small imitative seals
" Close, 22 Edw. I, m. 9.
"Ibid. 25 Edw. I, m. 4<£
44 Ibid. 28 Edw. I, m. 4.
45 Ibid. 2 Edw. Ill, m. 27.
16 This was the great William of Wykeham, who
became bishop of Winchester in 1367. His appoint-
ment as warden of Bernwood Forest is not named by
any of his biographers.
" Kennet, Punch. Antij. \\, 146.
FORESTRY
of the jury still pendent on tags of the parch-
ment. But there was nothing to report of any
moment, and it is a mere formal return, seven
lines in length.48
In July, 1489, Forest Pleas were held at
Buckingham before Sir John Ratcliif and Sir
Reginald Gray. There were ninety-seven pre-
sentments, and fines were inflicted varying from
half a mark to loos. The offences included the
killing of several fallow deer, and in two cases of
red deer, also of wholesale game hunting with
bows and arrows and cross-bows (ba/istis ac quarel-
Ki) by a large company chiefly from Notting-
hamshire and other counties. The vert pre-
sentments numbered 117, the fines varying from
one to two shillings ; in seven of these cases an
alibi was established, and nine were excused fines
on the score of poverty. William Rede was
presented for having kept a coppice closed for
seven years which ought to lie open, to the great
hurt of the king's deer. Among those claiming
chartered liberties in the Buckinghamshire forests
were the abbots of Oseney and Nutley, the prior
of Frideswide, the prioress of Studley, and the
provost of Oriel College.4'
The dissolution of the monasteries was, in
Buckinghamshire as elsewhere, sadly disastrous
to the woodlands of the county. In 1541,
commissioners were appointed to regulate the
sales of the coppices of Bundon and Echyllthorn
at Horwood, in Whaddon Chase, late the pro-
perty of St. Al ban's Abbey. At the same time
other commissioners were appointed for the sale of
Honers Wood, late the property of Missenden
Abbey."
The priory of Tickford, Newport Pagnel,
was surrendered to Wolsey in 1525, but on the
cardinal's fall came to the crown, when the
lands surrounding the house were turned into a
deer park.
A certificate was presented by Thomas
Tavener and Robert King, 'prescvators of the
Queenes Majesties woods within her highness
Parkes of Tyckford and Hanslopp,' as to the
felling of woods and trespasses done in the years
1587-8. In January, 1587, there was a sale in
Tickford Park of underwood, when six trees
were taken out of the coppice, valued at £4,
without the leave of the woodward or his
deputy. George Annesley, the park keeper,
was charged with selling forty loads of ' Browse
wood ' (winter food for deer) at 5</. a load,
amounting to the sum of ^10, and also with
damaging the newly-cut coppice by turning into
it horses and colts, and by mowing divers places,
amounting to a loss valued at £13 61. 8</. The
preservators recommended that a sale should
shortly be made, for the benefit of the crown,
of two or three hundred trees, which could well
be spared in Newton Pagnel, the Mersh End,
and Tickford.*1
In the reign of James I Bernwood Forest,
Shotover, and Stowood, were required to furnish
timber for the Royal Navy, and a pretty quarrel
arose between the shipwrights sent to the
forest and the keepers and other officials as to
the proper ownership of certain perquisites, the
chips ' which fall out to be made in the squaring
and sising of the tymber.' These the repre-
sentatives of the Navy claimed as ' a fee and dutie
ever belonging to them in all places where they
have been ymployed in like seruice and never
challenged from them untill nowe.' The keepers,
always keen on making a profit from the sale of
wood, naturally took a different view, and the
matter was referred to London. The authori-
ties, favouring the claim of the shipwrights, Peter
Pett'* and Daniel Duck, decided that they
should not be robbed of what was certainly ' the
proceed of theire owne worke and labour and
yeeldyng no browse for the deere, to give colour
of claime to the kepers,' with the result that a
warrant to this effect was issued to John Denham,
farmer of the forest of Bernwood.*3
A commission was issued in 1623 for the
disafforesting of Bernwood. Sir John Dormer
and the other commissioners allotted to every
freeholder in the forest in the proportion of 10
acres for every 100 acres, as well as 230 acres
for the poor of the district in the counties of
Bucks and Oxon. But a dispute arose as to the
proportions, and a jury was summoned in the
following year to set out the allotments. A bill,
however, was filed in chancery, and judgement
was declared in 1632, whereby the forest tenants
of the two counties obtained the allotment of
577^ acres, leaving 1,397$ acres to the crown.*4
Not only was the forest law in operation, in
however modified a form, in Bernwood Forest
proper until the end of the reign of James I, but
occasional swainmote courts were held outside
its boundaries, as, for example, in Whaddon Chase,
as late as the reign of Henry VIII. The general
history of this chase is indeed of considerable
interest.
The entries in Domesday Book are decisive as
to the well-wooded character of Whaddon and
the neighbouring manors," and at a very early
period Walter Giffard, earl of Buckingham,'*
granted to the priory of St. Faith at Longue-
ville all Horwood, except the fee of Durand,
with tith:s of wood, pannage, fishpool, and all
45 Forest Proc. K.R. bdle. I, No. 9.
" Exch. Accts. Forest Proc. K. R. bdle. I,
M Accts. Exch. bdle. 149, Nos. I, 2.
2
11 Ibid. bdle. 557, No. 13.
" One of the famous family whose history it traced1
in the Ancestor, x, 147.
" S.P. Dom. Jas. I, Ixxx, 54 ; cf. Cal. S.P. Dom.
Jai. I (161 1-18), pp. 85, 125.
M Lipscombe, Bucks, i, 53-4.
- V.C.H. Bucks, i. For the account of Whaddoa
No. 10. Chase Mr. C. H. Vellacott is responsible.
14 Round, Cal. DM. Fratut, 75.
137 18
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
the profits of his wood at Whaddon. And these
privileges and quittances in the wood of Whad-
don, together with all the assarts of the monks
in his wood of Horwood, were confirmed to
them about a century later by William de
Humetis,67 Constable of Normandy, to whom
the manor of Whaddon, detached from the
honour of Giffard, had been granted. As part
of the land of the Normans Whaddon came to
the king's hands in the reign of King John, but
was soon granted to William D'Albini.68 On
the accession of Henry III William Marshall
for a time retained Whaddon, but it was ulti-
mately restored on his death to the earl of
Arundel, passed in natural course to his brother,
Hugh D'Albini, and on his decease in 1241,
since he was the last male heir of the grantee,
again reverted to the crown.
The woodland and wild heath appendent to
the manor of Whaddon were at this time part "
of the royal forest of Buckinghamshire, which
had been extended to cover nearly the whole of
the county. In the year following the death of
Hugh D'Albini the manor of Whaddon with its
woodlands was granted to John Fitz Geoffrey, a
son by his second wife of Geoffrey Fitz Peter,
late earl of Essex.60 The coveted game pre-
serves were now vested in a subject, but as we
learn from an argument 6l in a lawsuit of the
following reign certain incidents of forest law
still remained : —
King Henry granted and gave it to us to hold it as a
chase in the same manner as he held while it was a
royal forest ; and we have three swainmotes yearly
for searching and enquiring whether any one puts
more beasts therein than he ought to put.
There is also ample evidence M that the business
of this court was by no means confined even at
a very much later period to merely regulating
the rights of common.
John Fitz John, son of the grantee of 1242,
seems to have still further enlarged the borders
of the chase by acquiring from the abbot of
St. Albans his hunting-rights in Abbot's Wood
in Little Horwood, lander the reservation that
the abbot should be free to hunt in this wood on
four days in the year, namely, two at Holy Rood
67 Round, Cal. Doc. France, 78.
58 He was remembered there as having granted half
a virgate in almoin to the hermit of Codemor, Hund.
R. (Rec. Com.), ii, 3 3 63, and a meadow at Whad-
don was known in 1318 as the ' Heremitesmede '
(Cart, of Snellshall, B.M. Add. MSS. 37068, fol.
38<31.). In Tudor times one 'walk' or section
of Whaddon Chase bore the name of Codemore
Quarter.
" Year Books 0/21, 22 Edw. I (Rolls Ser.), 622,
et seq.
60 Ibid. ; cf. Plac. De Quo Warr. 94, 95.
61 Tear Books, ut sup. ; cf. Turner, Select Pleas of
ike Forest (Selden Soc.).
65 Ct. R. P.R.O. bdle. 155, No. 29.
Day, and two at Candlemas.63 It is possible
also that the woodland of Great Horwjod
granted to St. Faith's, Longueville, and attached
to its cell, the alien priory of Newton Long-
ville, were also claimed at this time by the lord
of Whaddon as in some sort a parcel of the
chase.64
The importance of Whaddon as a hunting
centre is borne out by certain of the tenures
met with both on it and the adjacent manors.
The custody of the chase of Whaddon was held
in fee by the Giffard family. Early in the reign
of Edward I Robert Giffard is returned 65 as
holding i£ virgates by petty serjeanty ' per quam
custodit silvam domini,' paying 3^. a year and
rendering certain customary services. He has
also housbote and heybote in the lord's wood,
and his beasts (averia) go with his lord's to
pasture ' exceptis parco et prato non falcato.'
Here we have perhaps the earliest mention of
the lord's park as distinct from the chase gener-
ally. Again, in a deed66 of 1318, we hear of
John Giffard, keeper of the chase of Whaddon
(custodi chacie de Whaddon)^ in connexion with a
certain ' placea vasti infra chaciam ' granted and
leased to him by Robert de Montalt and the
Lady Emma his wife, who held the chase in
dower as the widow of Richard67 Fitzjohn.
The right of Giffard to inclose this land saepibus
et baits is conceded by the prior of Snelshall,
who probably had some claim to common therein.
The custody of the chase remained with the
Giffards till the second half of the fifteenth
century, when an heiress carried it in marriage to
Robert Pigott, who is said to have been a York-
shireman and a follower of Queen Margaret.68
Besides the keeper of the chase other tenants69
held land in Whaddon by services in connexion
with its woodland during the thirteenth century,
while one tenement, which early in the reign of
Edward I had escheated to Richard Fitzjohn,
had formerly been enjoyed by Ralf le Appelgart
by the service of holding a leash of greyhounds
when the lord of Whaddon wished to hunt.
Even Sir John Passelewe held half a virgate in
65 Hund. R. ii, 3 3 83.
M Cf. Hund. R. ii, 338, liber am chaciam inHorewood.
In the late fifteenth century this claim was set up by
the lord, but the swainmote juries denied it and
asserted that the Prior's Wood (then belonging to New
College) was purlieu.
"Hund. R. ii, 3 3 6b. This Robert Giffard was
the son of Geoffrey. Both father and son witness a
charter of Paul Peiuere to John, prior of Snelshall,
and his monks, about the middle of the thirteenth
century. B.M. Add. Chart. 53786.
66 Cart, of Snelshall, B.M. Add. MSS. 37068,
fol. 38^.
67 Brother of John Fitzjohn. The reversion was
vested in Richard de Burgh, earl of Ulster and lord
of Connaught. Cart, of Snelshall, ut sup. fol. 3 8 a1.
69 Lipscombe, Hist, of Bucks, i, 405.
69 Richard de Admodesham and Hamo le Blake.
138
FORESTRY
Mursley appurtenant to Whaddon by a similar
service to be performed at Winslow bridge.70
There seems to be evidence 71 that John Fitz
John and his brother and successor used their
privileges of chase to the utmost, to the annoy-
ance of their weaker neighbours. The men of
Mursley hundred declared in 1276 that John
Fitzjohn 'appropriavit sibi liberas chacias,'
which may suggest that he was claiming rights
of chase in that part of Shenley known as
Westbury, which in 1086 had belonged to
Richard Engaine. Furthermore, it was sub-
ject of complaint that Robert Giffard, Peter
the Forester, and Robert Stort, bailiffs of Lord
John Fitzjohn, had imprisoned William Popping
and Richard le Noreys, servants of Thierry le
Alemaund, apparently to extort money. At
the very end of the century .Richard Fitzjohn
was fighting a case in the courts arising out of
his seizure of the beasts of Robert FitzNeal in
the Abbot's Wood.7'
From that time until the fifteenth century, in
the absence of the swainmote rolls, we have only
occasional allusions to the chase of Whaddon,
notices of the hereditary keepers the Giffards
and other officers,73 or warrants for the taking
of deer 74 when the chase and park of Whaddon
for any reason was in the king's hands.
Richard, duke of York, to whom Whaddon
and its chase had come with the lands and titles
of the earls of Ulster, fell at Wakefield in 1460.
Cecily his widow survived him, and her dower in
Whaddon was assured by letters patent from
Henry VI, successively confirmed by her sons
Edward IV and Richard III. She died seised of
Whaddon in 1495, but already in the seventh
year of his reign Henry VII had granted the
reversion of the manor and chase to his queen,
Elizabeth, daughter of Edward IV and grand-
daughter of the duchess dowager of York.
As already stated, the heiress of the GifFards
had married a Mr. Pigott, a north countryman,
and brought him the hereditary keepcrship of
the chase, which descended to his son Thomas
Pigott, afterwards serjeant-at-law. Mr. Pigott
appears to have been keen in his maintenance of
the rights of his office and the claims of his
mistress in the chase, and met with considerable
opposition from a gentleman of the neighbour-
hood, Thomas Stafford, Esq., of Tattenhoe. It is
possible that during the early fifteenth century,
and still more during the troubled times of the
Wars of the Roses, the chase had not been
strictly guarded, its exact bounds had become
matter of dispute, inclosures and purprestures
" Hand. R. (Rec. Com.), ii, 336^.
» Ibid, i, 4z6.
71 Tear Books of 21-22 EJw. I, ut sup.
71 Nich. Knoll, late parkerand surveyor of Whaddon
Chace, Chan. Inq. p.m. 6 Ric. II (103)
" Pat. i Hen. IV, pt. 8, m. 12. Edmund, E.
of March, was at that time an infant.
had been made, and in consequence Mr. Pigott
set himself to find a remedy.
However this may be, in the spring7' of 1494
there was held at Whaddon, in the churchyard,
a ' syttynge ' or court of the forest,7' under the
presidency of Sir Rainold Bray, one of the
justices of the forest south of Trent. Not
only were ' the chief of the counsaile ' with
Sir Rainold, but the Buckinghamshire gentry
mustered in force, ' bjth my Lorde Grey, Sir
Thomas Grene and Mr. Emson and many
mo.' And, proceeds the local account, 'all the
olde men of the comon were then brought in
that al that day by the mynde of Mr. Stafford and
Mr. Pigot which stryved for the chace grownde
and the purlews and for ingrement to be had
there.' About the original chase of Whaddon
proper there was no dispute. When its bounds
had been recited, Sir Rainold Bray required of
the jurors 'what more chace ground there was ?
To whom they answered and said, Thabbotes
grownde is chace in a maner.' He then asked
them ' What maner was that ? ' They answered,
' if the dutie be paid,' and this duty was 7 deer
a year due to the abbot of St. Albans, prt at
midsummer on St. Alban's Day, and part at
Christmas — possibly a commutation of the old
reservation of four days' hunting a year. Its
bounds were then set out.
After this Sir Rainold Bray demanded,' What
is there more of chace grownde ? ' and sugge*ted
that the Prior's Wood 7; should be included. But
the jurors made answer and said ' they had nothinge
therewith to do,' and were similarly recalcitrant
with regard to ' Nycols Wood ' and 'Totnolbare.'78
The justice then passed on to inquire of Abbots
Mede and Pukpit Hill, and the reply that ' it is
the demaine and belonging to Little Horwood *
provoked the exclamation, ' Why, sires, will ye
say that these be not chace growndes ? ' But the
jury stubbornly adhered to their testimony. The
only 'chace growndes' they knew were those
which had been 'evermore usen.' Mr. Empson
was then asked who owned the Prior's Wood.
Mr. Pigott, however, answered, ' New College,
Oxford." But neither the master7* nor his attorney
" Invention of the Cross, 9 Hen. VII.
" For the popular account of this 'syttynge' see
B.M. Add. MS. 37069, fol. 134^ et seq. A late
and rather illegible copy of a swainmote roll for 9
Hen. VII, is extant, and this may be the official record
of the court (B.M. Add. R. 53964). It contains a
good deal of matter besides the recital of the bounds
of the chase.
" The wood formerly belonging to the alien priory
of Newton Longville.
n i.e., Tattenhoe Bare. This was the site of the
•hog-sty' of Thomas Stafford, who apparently was
regarded as the champion of popular rights.
" At a later court, about 1 500, the abbot of St.
Albans, New College, the prior of Snclshall, and Mr.
Stafford were all represented by their attorneys. D. of
Lane. Forest Proc. bdle. 3, No. 24.
»39
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
was present, and the justice decided 'We can do
nothing to there grownde if they have no knoledge
thereof ; we sit here but as voyde for this mater.'
As to the stubborn jury, he continued, ' I daresay
these men ben good and true and a true verdyt
they have brought, houbeit they be not abull
men to shew the kinge.' Therefore he ordered
twelve neighbouring gentlemen to be 'paneld
upon a quest,' who were to bring in their verdict
by St. Bartholomew's Day next. According to
the popular account we have been following,
these gentlemen did not bring in their verdict
nor were ever called so to do. 'So this matter
standyth as it dyd before tyme which have ever
be caled purlew grownde and it is no chace and
never was.' The further business of this court
as set out in what appears to be the official
record 80 need not detain us further — details as to
the deer, offences against customs of common, and
such inclosures and purprestures as the flagrant
instance of Mr. Stafford's ' Hoggesty.'
No other forest court seems to have been held
in Whaddon for several years, but about 1500,"
and probably in the autumn, Mr. Pigott com-
manded 'another courte to be holden at Whaddon '
and the old questions were, in part, thrashed out
anew. He brought forward ' olde evidence,' and
by reason thereof urged the jurors to declare
Mursley Grove and Nicols Wood within the
bounds of the chase. ' We never saw it,' they
answered, ' ne yet our fathers before us, where-
fore we will never gree thereto.' He then offered
to ensure their legal immunity if they consented.
Then made answer John Macke, the foreman of
the quest, ' How will you bare us out if we
fortune to be laid in prison ? ' and his fellows
exclaimed 'all with hole voyce that they would
never agree thereto but as there fathers dyd by
olde tyme. Than he waxed angry and called
them all churles and said, if he lyved, that he
would quit them all there mede.'
Baffled on this point Mr. Pigott asked the
the jurors whether they would direct that
Mr. Stafford's hog-sty should be pulled down by
a certain day. They answered all and said ' They
would not meddle therewith ; there they found it
and there they would leave it.' This answer ex-
hausted the hereditary keeper's patience. He
ordered his clerk to take up the books and left
the court-room. But when Mr. Pigott had reached
the yard he turned again into the house and bade
the steward ' to wryte at chace all that ever was
within the bounds of the diche,' and promised to
bear him out. Further he ordered the steward
80 Assuming that the swainmote of 9 Hen. VII was
the occasion of this ' Syttynge.' Unfortunately in Add.
R. 53964, the portion of the date which would fix
the exact month is illegible.
81 The popular account leaves the date vague. The
time suggested is an inference from indications in D.
of Lane. Forest Proc., bdle. 3, No. 19, if, as is possible,
the presentations there refer to this court.
'lay ^lO upon Mr. Staffbrde's hed ' that his hog-
sty be pulled down by the Michaelmas following.
Part of Mr. Stafford's offence, as appears from the
presentments82 of the foresters in 14-15 Hen. VII,
was his appointment of a swineherd who was not
sworn 'to our Lord the King.' The hog-sty
was situate at Tattenhoe Bare. He had also been
guilty, during the years immediately preceding, of
trespasses against the king's venison, having with
others unknown slain a buck 'apud Snelleshale
quarter' on 18 June, 12 Hen. VII, and similarly
on 20 July, 14 Hen. VII, chased a doe at Salden
Leys outside the bounds of the king's chase of
Whaddon, but actually killed it at the Frith, which
was within the bounds. Mr. Thomas Stafford
was also a keen fox-hunter and ' usualiter de anno
in annum ' entered both park and chase in
pursuit of his quarry. But it is clear that there
was a considerable amount of poaching in the
king's chase during the last years of the fifteenth
century among the neighbouring residents, both
high and low, from Marmaduke Constable, knight,
who killed a ' pricket : at Westwood Hill, on
2O August, 13 Hen. VII, to Henry Chery of Fenny
Stratford, yeoman, who on 26 August, two years
later, entering the king's chase at the Frith,
killed and carried away ' unam damam vocatam
a tegge.' Besides the venison trespasses there
were a number of interesting presentments as to
common rights,83 and a recital of the bounds of
the chase proper which we can merely mention
here.
So unsatisfactory had been Mr. Pigott's ex-
perience of courts in connexion with Whaddon
chase,84 that no other was held in his lifetime.
He died a serjeant-at-law about 1520, leav-
ing his second wife Elizabeth a widow. This
redoubtable lady, who was the eldest coheiress 85
of John Iwardby of Great Missenden, had already
been married to a Northamptonshire squire before
her alliance with Mr. Thomas Pigott. On her
second husband's death she found herself 8e in
possession of the manor of Doddershall, which she
had as her marriage-portion, and besides other pro-
perty held the manor of Whaddon and the custody
of the park and chase for the term of life with
remainder to William Pigott her step-son. The
timber and venison of the park and chase, with the
exception of certain recognized perquisites, were
apparently reserved to Queen Catherine, who had
succeeded her mother-in-law in their enjoyment.
88 D. of Lane. Forest. Proc. (P.R.O.), bdle. 3, No. 19.
83 One complaint was that the warden of New
College, Oxford, had inclosed the common at Prior's
Wood to the extent of twenty acres.
84 None till 1 6 Hen. VIII, according to Add.
MS. 37069. Possibly this is a scribe's mistake for
17 Hen. VIII.
85 Cal. Inq.p. m. Hen. Vll. Nos. 6 and 1080.
86 Cf. Rentals and Surveys (P.R.O.), ptfo. 2, No. 7,
and Chan. Inq. p.m. Ser. 2, 12 Hen. VIII, No. i.
Thomas Pygott.
I40
FORESTRY
In spite of these reservations great waste was
made in the woods after Serjeant Pigott's death,
and it was probably on this account that a swain-
mote87 was held at Whaddon just before Holy
Rood Day, on 12 September, 17 Hen. VIII.
Thomas Wendilborough, the keeper of the
park, deposed that a buck, a ' sore,' a ' sorell,' and
certain ' rascalls ' had died of murrain during the
preceding year and 'are hanged upon the trees.'
The two keepers of the chase, the keeper of the
Prior's Wood, and the keeper of the Abbot's Wood
also gave united testimony that a buck, a doe,
and seven ' rascalls ' had died of murrain in the
chase during the same time, and their bodies were
similarly exhibited. One poaching case in the
queen's park was presented, Robert Spencer,
gentleman, having been responsible for the death
of a ' pricket ' killed in the month of June
previous to the holding of the court. Five
persons were fined id. a piece for building and
retaining hog-sties in the chase, while the keeper
of the Abbot's Wood had made a 'park' within
the chase and taken pannage and herbage in the
wood aforesaid to the grave damage of the queen.
In this last case the jury found that the queen
had been wont time out of mind to have pannage
and herbage, waif and stray, and all other liberties
in the Abbot's Wood except such wood and
underwood as was reserved for the Abbot's use.
This matter was evidently regarded as of some
importance and reserved for the consideration of
the queen's councils. There had also been laxity
as to the commoning of sheep,88 and direction was
given that the ancient customs relating thereto
should be observed under a penalty of 40^. in
each case of default. Furthermore, an entry as
to common-rights relating to Newton Longville
seems to indicate that in the abeyance of the
regular swainmote these matters, as they affected
the chase, were dealt with in the ordinary courts
of the manor.
The most serious matter, however, which
engaged the attention of this court was the waste
of the vert both in the chase and park. The
jury returned that since the death of Thomas
Pigott 392 oaks and 18 ashes had been cut
down, and more than 600 loads of underwood
and ' top and lop ' (subbosci et rami) carried off
within the chase, as well as 137 oaks, 52
ashes, and 700 loads of underwood likewise
wasted in the park. The underwood and ' top
and lop ' was valued at the rate of bd. a load.
Moreover, Mrs. Pigott had broken and destroyed
the ' Capud Stagni vocatum le Newenton Pond-
" Court Rolls (P.R.O.), bdle. 155, No. 19.
* This was a frequent bone of contention daring
the early seventeenth century in forests and chases ; cf.
r.C.H. Essex, ii ; V.C.H. Glouc. ii, ' Forestry.' A*
regards Whaddon Chases especially, we know from
other sources that 'Sheep were not to be allowed
unfolded in the wood commons." B.M. Add. MS.
37069, fol. 147.
hede ' in the chase and taken out all the fish.
The jury found that her late husband and his
predecessors had always full fishing rights in the
pool in question, but Mrs. Pigott, in utterly de-
stroying the fish, had evidently exceeded her
powers, and she was ordered to repair the pond-
head and re-stock it.
A final presentment was made as to the parties
responsible for the keeping up of the boundary or
fence of the chase.8*
A year or more later we have further evidence
of Mrs. Pigott's reckless proceedings in certain
articles *° exhibited against her ' for wastes and
destruccions by her and her keepers done within
the Queen's Chase and Park of Whaddon ' from
the time of her husband's death till Michaelmas,
1 8 Hen. VIII. The trees felled are there esti-
mated at 600. Some of these were sold at ICM.
a piece, others carried to Doddershall for
the building of her new house there, while of
four wood-sales in Nicols Wood and the sale
of Lusshepytt and the Frith coppices she had
rendered no account. The underwood felled
was estimated as previously at 1,300 loads and
much more, and the destruction had continued
since the queen was last at Whaddon.*1
The slaughter done amongst the queen's deer
was even more serious. In one year only, from
Holy Rood Day, 17 Hen. VIII, to the same date
in the following year, more than sixty deer had
been killed in the chase, and in the 'grece tyme*
last past the keepers had killed at least twenty,
which was a very grievous offence. Nine or ten
fawns had been given to various persons, and the
keeper of the park had sent to his ' fryndes
dyverse dere in sakkys.' Indeed the ' said Eliza-
beth distroyed so largely the Quenys Grace' seid
dere that sumtyme she fedd her houshold with
them,' and venison, it was reported, was the
chief victual of the keepers on the flesh days.
What action was taken by the crown on these
revelations does not appear, but there is some
reason to believe that greater strictness was
observed during the next few years in safeguard-
ing the woodland and the venison at Whaddon.
* Quod prior de Snellyshale debet facere bundam
de le Chace a Shepcotte Yate usque Angulum de le
Oxlesse et ab Angulo de le Oxlesse usque Hacche Yate.
Johannes Hampden miles debet facere a Hacche Yate
usque clausum dicti prioris et a dicto clause prior debet
facere usque Totnolandend. Et villata de Totnoland-
ende a dicto clauso usque Ryngforde Yate. Et a
Ryngforde usque Crabtre Yate domina Regina debet
facere. Et a Crabtre Yate usque Cakefote Yate
Horwode Parva debet facere. Et a Cakefote Yate
usque finem bosci de Horwode villata de Horwode
Magna debet facere. Et • dicto fine bosci usque
Oldefeld Corner villata de Sykylburgh debet facere. Et
a Oldefelde Corner usque Lionellet Hollei villata de
Nasche debet facere.
" Forest Proc. K.R. bdle. I, No. II.
" The date of this is not stated. It may have
synchronized with the swainmote already referred to.
141
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
At the very close of her life Mrs. Pigott
was engaged in litigation in the Court of Aug-
mentations,98 and we hear incidentally that the
king, being seised of the park and chase on
the death of Queen Jane Seymour, had in July
of his thirty-second year granted her a lease
under certain conditions. In 1548 she made
her will and shortly after died and was buried
at Whaddon, Giffard's manor passing by sale
after her death to the Greys of Wilton, and with
it the hereditary custody of the park and chase
and the keepership of the game.93
The later history of the chase cannot be dealt
with in detail here, but a few notes may be
allowed as to the gradual deterioration of its
woodland. It is doubtful whether any swain-
mote courts were held in the chase after the
reign of Henry VIII, but under Elizabeth in-
quisitions were made as to the state of the wood-
land. It was found by one of these that Wood-
pond Coppice, containing fifty acres, was sold by
Mr. Sylvester Taverner,
sythe the begyning of the raign of Quyne Mary and
also Nycols Wood, containing 30 acres, was sold by
one Vaghan sarvante to the olde Earl of Sussex and
by William Cottesford and also they solde five score
trees owte of the same wood imedyatly after the
vnderwood was gone and every tree was worthe zoJ.
Also Mr. Hamden, Clarke of the Quen's Majestys
Kytchen, had for the reparatyon of Kyrsloo 40 okes
by the Quynes warrant dated the 19 Feb. 2 Eliz.
Also he had 20 okes for Kyrsloo aforsayd by Quynes
warrant 24 May 1560.
Other grants are mentioned, and as to apparently
unauthorized waste,
the olde Lord Grey of Wylton sold 20 lodes of fyre
wode yearlye for the space of 10 yeares for 2O/. by
the yeare. Also we fynde three rydynges made in
the chase by Mr. Thomas Wake lyeftenaunt there
conteyning 3 acres,
and so the tale continues of the ill custody of
the vert by its sworn guardians. It is noted
that Woodpond Coppice ' being fyrewoode was
40 years' growth when it was fallen, Nycoll's
Wood being fyrewood was 21 years' growth.'
The other wood was partly ' firewood ' and
partly timber.94 It must also be remembered
that the recognized rights of commoners95 and
others entitled to perquisites were liable to serious
abuse and no doubt contributed to the gradual
deterioration of the chase at the time.
9> Aug. Proc. (P.R.O.), bdle. 14, No. 25.
93 Add. MS. 37069, fol. 140, Lipscombe, Hist, of
Bucks,\i\, 498 ; F. of Fines, Bucks. Trin. 5 Edw. VI.
94 Add. MS. 37069, fol. 144.
95 ' Also the comyners that boundes upon the chasse
do clayme and hath had tyme owte of mynde sufficient
hedge boote owt of the Chasse to repayre the Chasse
mownde, as oft as nead dyd require,' while certain
wood rights were claimed by Lord Grey, Mr. Percival
Jefferson, the farmer of Snelshall, the ' baylye of
Wynsloo ' and others. Add. MS. 37069, fol.
Towards the end of the month of March,
1594, Sir John Fortescue wrote on behalf of the
queen to Thomas Fortescue, His Majesty's Sur-
veyor of Lands in Buckinghamshire, and to
Thomas Stafford and Edward Walter, Her
Majesty's Woodwards, that he was informed
that a great deal of the paling and rails of
Whaddon Park was blown down and utterly
decayed. Repairs must be taken in hand lest
'her Majestie's deer breake forth to the decaie
of the game there.' The timber necessary could
be felled in the park itself, while the top and lop
might be sold and the money applied to meet the
necessary expenses.98
In the autumn of the same year, after the
death of Mr. John Savage, lieutenant of the
chase, orders were ratified by the Lady Sybil
Grey as to the perquisites of the officers. The
lieutenant was to have one buck and one doe
each year with all waifs and strays and the dead
hedges of every coppice, beside all windfalls in
the chase above a load, and six loads for fuel,
while a certain number of loads of wood were to-
be allotted yearly to the other officers who were
under the general charge of Mr. Underwood,
apparently the senior keeper.97 Fees of all the
deer in the park were to belong to the keeper of
the park only, but ' all the other keepers in the
chace to haue all the fees of the deare killed
every man alyke in his turne.' No browsewood
should be sold except in one special case four
loads a year, and it was further directed for the
protection of the young trees that
no horse or geldyng be suffered to goe into any
coppice there till it shall be 8 or 9 yeres growth
without they be tied in any playne where no wood
is growyng.
In the early years of the next reign considerable
attention was directed to the woods and forests
of the crown, and about 1608 a survey98 was
made of several extents of woodland in Bucking-
hamshire and along the Northampton border,
including ' Whaddon Chase and Parke parcell of"
the Queenes Majesties joynture and Abbottes
woodes late the Lord Grayes not in her Majesties,
joynture.' As a result of this survey 328 trees
were sold for the sum of ^517 Js. ^d. Of
these the park furnished forty-two and Abbots
Wood eighty-five, the rest belonging to the
chase proper.99
But the middle of the seventeenth century saw
the most serious destruction of the timber in the
98 Add. MS. 37069, fol. 199.
97 The park-keeper was apparently Thomas Peers.
There seem to h;ive been four keepers in the chase,
William Underwood, Richard Smyth, John Maynard,
and John Brown, besides William Lorde, in charge
of ' Shucklo Warren,' and John Cartwrich, the wood-
ward.
98 P.R.O. Exch. Spec. Com. 7107.
99 For a later sale of dottard trees in the reign of
James I see Egerton MS. 808, fol. 3 et seq.
142
FORESTRY
chase, which was at this time in the hands of the
duke of Buckingham. In 1649 and 1651
Parliament100 ordered that £3,000 should be
raised by felling wood in Whaddon Chase to
meet the expenses of the garrison of Windsor
and for other purposes, and this was accordingly
carried out, while the encumbered condition of
the Villiers estates after the Civil War invited
further waste, and Catherine, duchess of Buck-
ingham, converted the park into pasture and
tillage in the reign of Charles II.
A lamentable picture of the state of the wood-
lands 101 is drawn at the end of the next century
by the reporters to the Board of Agriculture.
Whaddon Chase was then divided into several
coppices, covering about 22,000 acres, part of
which was shut up for a certain number of years,
usually nine, and then laid open to the deer as
well as to the commoners for twelve years. The
coppices produced large oak, ash, and other timber
as well as underwood, ' but from the custom
of the deer and the commoners' cattle being
suffered to depasture thereon unlimitedly, the
young timber is at this time totally destroyed.'
The reporters proceed to point out that if the
deer were confined to one spot and the chase and
commons divided among the parties interested,
it would be a very important advantage gained to the
proprietors, and a great national benefit, inasmuch as
the growth of oak and other Umber would be en-
couraged.
They further state that
large sticks have formerly been sold from this chase
for upwards of ten pounds per tree ; it is therefore
the more to be deplored, that the young timber
should be so continually destroyed, the land being so
well adapted to its growth.
From a further report lw by the Rev. St. John
Priest to the Board of Agriculture in 1813 we
learn that the coppices were twenty-eight in
number, of which twenty-one belonged to Mr.
Selby of Winslow and the rest to New College.
Besides the chase proper, he mentions certain
'busky-leys* which 'are somewhat of the same
nature, except that they have not been the pro-
perty of the Crown as Chaces have.' The
recommendations made to the Board of Agri-
culture in 1794 did not bear immediate fruit, as
the deer were still allowed to roam at large over
the chase for between forty and fifty years longer
before they were finally limited to the inclosure
of the park.
The General View of the Agriculture tf the
County of Buckingham, drawn up in 1794, by
Messrs. James and Malcolm, has already been
'" Cal. Comf. Gen. Proc. 376, 484, 520, 556, and
S. P. Dom. Interr. cxxx, 10, 52.
101 James and Malcolm, Gen. yiew Agric. Bucks.
(1794), 42.
l" Op. cit. 26, 27.
referred to in connexion with Whaddon Chase.
This comparatively brief reference to woods and
woodlands stated, at the outset, that from Marlow
to Fingest, and through that district bounded by
the London and Oxford road on the south and
the Thames on the north, one sixth part of the
land was covered with beechwood, ' which may
yield a profit of from 141. to 20*. per acre per
annum.' The woods required but little atten-
tion, as the old trees shed a sufficient quantity of
seed to keep up a constant supply of young
plants. In the parish of Wycombie there were
700 acres of common beech woodland. In the
neighbourhood of Chesham, the large thriving
beech woods were under good management.
There were also particularly fine woods of beech
growing upon the chalk in the parish of Amers-
ham. Mention is made of the large amount of
planting, chiefly with Scotch firs, which had
recently been undertaken on the heaths in the
parishes of Wavendon and Brickhill, which was
in a very thriving state.
Mr. Priest, in the tenth chapter of his report
of 1813, deals particularly with woods and plan-
tations. It is there stated that the Whaddon
coppices were sold as firewood and also for
fences ; the faggot wood at 241. per hundred,
viz. 120 faggots. The thorns were sold not only
for fences but also to fill up underdrains, and for
that purpose were carried many miles. At
Hillesden Wood, seven or eight acres were felled
once in twelve years, and at Emberton, where
there were about eighty acres of wood, six were
felled yearly. There were 140 acres of copse
wood at Stoke Goldington. On many farms
strips were set aside to grow sallows, ashes, and
elms to serve as stuff for hurdles.
The Chiltern Hills, particularly at West
Wycombe, are mentioned as abounding in low-
growing junipers. Beech is named as by far
the most abundant wood in the county, and in
general use for the manufacture of chairs. Beech
wood is sold at from I ^d. to i fd. a foot. The
beech wood was exceptionally beautiful at Shard-
low, where Mr. Drake had one beech which
was perfectly straight and 75 ft. in height up to
the first bough. The girth, two feet from the
ground, was 7 ft. 8 in., and it was estimated to
contain 229 ft. of timber.
The timber of Ashridge Park is described as
noteworthy, and the measurements are given of
several oak and beech trees.
There are some interesting comments offered
upon the growth of trees, owing to the difference
of soil above and below the Icknield-way. The
beech, ash, larch, and fir are stated not to flourish
below the Icknield-way, whilst all other trees, such
as oaks, elms, horse-chestnuts, and whitethorn
were very promising. A remarkable old oak is
named at Thornton, which was quite hollow and
capable of containing seventeen persons ; it had
a girth at the roots of 45 ft.
»43
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
As to the numerous old-established private
parks of Buckinghamshire, apart from royal
forests, abounding in fine timber and well stocked
with deer, much information has already been
recorded of Ashridge Park (chiefly in Hertford-
shire), of Fawley Court Park (partly in Oxford-
shire), as well as of the historic parks of Biddlesden,
Bulstrode, Claydon, Ditton, Doddershall, Hart-
well, Langley, Stoke, Stowe, Thornton, Turville,
Whaddon, and West Wycombe.103
Langley Park, of 383 acres, is well timbered
with oak ; to the north of the park is a large
tract of woodland, about l£ miles long by three-
quarters of a mile broad, appropriately termed the
Black Park, which is covered with Scotch firs ;
it was originally planted about the middle of the
seventeenth century, but the greater part of it is
self-sown.
There are several parks in the county which
are not deer-stocked, but are quite noteworthy for
their fine timber : three of the best examples are
Butler's Court, Beaconsfield, of 400 acres ; Gay-
hurst Park of 250 acres ; and Hughenden Manor
House of 140 acres.
The county affords instances of an exceptional
number of fine avenues of diversified interest.
To gain the noble park of Stowe from Bucking-
ham, an avenue of trees two miles in length has
to be traversed. Thornton Hall, with a park of
181 acres, has a good avenue of elms. At
Taplow Court there is a long avenue of well-
grown cedars of Lebanon. Wavendon House
has a fine elm avenue, half-a-mile in length ;
whilst Wavendon Tower has an avenue of limes
and horse-chestnuts. At Yewdon Manor,
Hambleden, there is an ancient avenue of yews.
A singularly fine yew hedge is also worth noting
at Remnantz, Great Marlow. The somewhat
wild avenue of beech and Spanish chestnuts at
Great Hampden is of historic interest.
Some of the finest beech trees of the county
are in the grounds of Hampden House ; and
excellent examples will also be found in the
beautifully diversified grounds near Chesham. At
Burnham Beeches, in the south of the county — a
beautiful remnant of English woodland scenery,
purchased by the corporation of the City of
London, under the provisions of the Open Spaces
Act of 1878 — there are numbers of great
mutilated, but picturesque beeches, pollarded in
early days.
la> P.C.H. Bucks, i, 172-5.
The ash is widely distributed throughout the
county, but chiefly in the shape of hedgerow
timber.
The woods of the north of the county are
chiefly oak with an undergrowth in which the
sloe largely predominates, and the crab-apple is
not infrequent. There are large plantations of
pine and larch at Brickhill. Throughout the
Thames Valley wych elm as well as common elm
is numerous, and frequently attains to a great
size. In the south of the county the black
poplar is fairly common. On the chalk, the yew,
juniper and holly are frequent, though usually
in stunted forms. The box flourishes and is
probably indigenous on the northern chalk
escarpment, especially in the neighbourhood of
Ellesborough. The hornbeam is perhaps com-
moner in Buckinghamshire than in any other
county, particularly on the eastern border ; and
the maple sometimes grows to a fair size, especi-
ally about Moulsoe.
The recent official agricultural returns testify
in a remarkable manner to the steady growth of
England's woodlands during the last quarter of
a century, owing to the greater attention that
has been given to the whole subject of arbori-
culture. During the ten years between 1895
and 1905 the total area of the woodlands of
England and Wales has increased by 52,483 acres.
Of this increase Buckinghamshire has had its
full share. The woodland area of this county
was 29,421 acres in 1888; 30,732 in 1891 ;
32,125 in 1895 ; and 34,548 in 1905. The
return of 1905 divides the woodlands into three
classes; (i) the coppice, under which head are
included all that springs up again from the old
stools after periodical felling ; (2) the plantations,
under which are reckoned all that has been
planted or replanted within the last fifteen years ;
and (3) other woods. The Buckinghamshire
total includes 4,586 acres of coppice and 1,322
acres of plantation.
The recent considerable increase in the wood-
land of this county is doubtless due, as elsewhere,
to no small extent to what has been termed the
luxurious value of forest trees and coverts on the
larger estates ; that is to say, to the beauty of
woodland landscape and to planting as an assist-
ance in the maintenance of game. But, at the
same time, some portion of the Buckinghamshire
increase is doubtless due to the commercial value
of beechwood in general turnery, and more
especially in the manufacture of chairs.
144
SCHOOLS
INTRODUCTION
BUCKINGHAMSHIRE is for histori-
cal purposes a single-school county.
The Grammar School of the Royal
College of the Blessed Mary of
Eton by Windsor bulks as largely
in the sphere of records in the past as it does in
the world of education to-day. The other
grammar schools of the county have been de-
prived, by the carelessness, or worse, of their
parents and guardians, of all their early history,
as in later times they were of their proper status,
until restored by the Endowed Schools Acts and
the Charity Commissioners. It is incredible
that in a county like Buckinghamshire grammar
schools should begin in the year 1440. But this
date, the date of the first foundation of Eton
College, is in the present state of knowledge the
earliest to which we can definitely assign any
educational foundation in the county. It can-
not really be the case that Buckingham, or
High, otherwise Chepping, Wycombe, or New-
port Pagnell, or Aylesbury, were without gram-
mar schools till the middle of the i6th century.
But as things stand, though it may be suspected,
it cannot be proved that they did possess them.1
The only grammar school besides Eton which
can be proved to have existed in the county
before the Reformation is one, long extinct, at
Thornton. This was founded by one of two
brothers who both bore the same name, that of
John Barton. The elder was a successful lawyer
and Recorder of London. Presumably he had
come from Buckingham, which county he repre-
sented in Parliament in 1397, as by his will,
5 June 1431,'* he directed his body to be buried
in St. Peter's Church in St. Rombald's aisle, and
gave 401. to the Hospital of St. Thomas Becket,
called of Aeon, London, to pray for his soul, and
all his lands to his brother, John Barton, junior,
on condition of maintaining a chantry chap-
lain for his and his parents' souls, to be appointed
by the master of the aforesaid hospital. These
1 While thil was passing through the press, the
proof as to Buckingham School has been found. In
a renul of John Barton (probably the elder of the
two mentioned below) of his lands in Buckingham at
Michelmas, 1423, the fint item is: ' Of the school-
master (Je magiitro icolarum) 40^.' at each of the four
terms of the year, or 1 3/. 4^. a year (B.M. Lansd.
Chart. 572).
" Browne Willis, Hut. Biuki. 54.
lands appear to have included the manor of
Thornton, conveyed to the two Bartons and
others in 1414.' John Barton, junior, also
founded, or refounded, a chantry, which had
originally been founded in 1344 by his prede-
cessor in title, John le Chastillon, with licence
from the Bishop of Lincoln, in whose diocese
Buckinghamshire was, the chantry chapel being
the chancel of the church. Barton directed this,1
by his will in 1443, to be rebuilt, and there he
and his wife still lie in effigy on an altar tomb.
The new foundation was either not completed
at the time, or else, being founded under licence
from Henry VI, it was thought prudent to re-
found it, under a licence from Edward IV. He
on 8 July 1468 4 granted the necessary permis-
sion, at the request of Thomas Littleton, ' Little-
ton on tenures,' Lord Chief Justice, and other
feoffees for Isabel the widow of John Barton,
who had become Isabel Shottesbrook, to Robert
Ingilton, who had bought from them the manor
of Thornton. In consequence the Chantry
Commissioners of Henry VIII * reported it as —
Barton's Chauntrye, founded by Roberte Ingleton, to
the intente to fynde a prieste for euer. And that the
said prieste shalle gyve yearly to 6 poore folkes contynu-
ally 6V. the weke for euery of theyme. And to gyve for
the lyuerey of 6 poore children euerye yeare to euerye
of theyme 4;. And also the said prieste to teache the
children of the said towne. The said chauntrye . . .
is obserued accordynge to the foundacyone. . . . And
so is verye necessarye. . . . Ycrly value £il IU.6J.
[Outgoings] 59/. 5|</., and so Remayneth for the
accustomablc paymentes as is before mencyoncd, viz.
for the priestes salary, £9 1 21. oj</. ; in almesse to 6
poore folkes, £~ \6t. ; and to 6 poore childcrcn, i\s.\
in all, £18 lit. o^J. William Abbotte, Incumbent
there.
There was besides 'a mansyone house,' but
this had for 1 4 or 1 5 years been in the hands of
Humfray Tirrell, whose family had succeeded
the successors of the Bartons.
The Chantry Certificate of Edward VI * gave
the additional information that Sir William Abbot,
the chantry priest, now ' of the age of 60 years,
having none other promocion, but onelie that,
• Ibid. 295.
1 Part of his will is given in Browne Willis, op. cit.
301.
4 Pat. 8 Edw. IV, pt. ii, m. 19.
' Chant. Cert. 4, no. 10 ; printed in A. F. Leach,
Eagl. Seboolt attkt Rtfirm. 14. • Ibid. 15.
'45
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
whoo hath doune heretofore, and yett doth, teach
a Free Schole of grammer according to the Foun-
dacion of the same.' The pension certificate
founded on it gave the net income of the incum-
bent as £10 8s. o^d. A note adds : '•Continuatur
the schole quoust/ue.' 7 Accordingly, by a warrant
signed 2O July 1548 by Sir Walter Mildmay and
Robert Kelway, the two officers of the Court
of Augmentations of the revenues of the Crown
accruing from the dissolutions of monasteries
and chantries, appointed to make provision for
the continuance of the schools and payments to
poor people, the school and the alms were con-
tinued. ' Forasmoche as it appearith by the
certificate of the particular surveyer of landes of
the said courte in the saide countie that a gram-
mer schole hath been contynuallie kept in
Thorneton . . with the revenues of the late
chauntery of our ladye there. . . Wee therefore
. . haue assigned and appoynted that the saide
grammer schole shall contynewe, and that Wil-
liam Abbot, scholemaster there, shall haue and
enjoye the rome of scholemaster there, and shall
have for his wages yerelie j£io 8*. o^.' The
receiver of the Crown rents in the courts was
required to pay the income accordingly.
It is clear, therefore, that this foundation,
three years later than that of Eton, was a small
Eton with such difference in size as was propor-
tionate to the riches of a recorder as compared
with the resources of a monarch. But all the
essential items were the same — the masses for the
founder's soul, the grammar school, free like that
of Eton for all children of the town or oppidans,
without payment of fees, the special provision of
scholars on the foundation, and the almsfolk.
Only whereas at Eton the masses were to be said
by a provost and 10 fellows and 10 chaplains,
and quite independent of the master who taught
the school, at Thornton the chaplain and the
master were one person ; and the 70 scholars at
Eton, boarded and lodged as well as clothed
were represented by 6 who only received their
livery, i.e. clothes; and the 13 almsfolk, lodged,
clothed, and boarded with stipends of ^3 os. 8d. a
year, were represented only by 6 almsfolk paid 6d.
a week, or less than ' a penny a day, because they
can't run any faster.' To complete the resem-
blance, the foundation was remade in the reign
of Edward IV; and as at Eton King Edward was
substituted as founder for King Henry, so the
Edwardian lord of the manor, Ingleton, was
credited with Barton's foundation.
The school was accordingly continued. The
Augmentation Office Accounts show that William
Abbot was duly paid his salary. The receiver
7 So in some cases, but it is generally abbreviated,
and should perhaps be continuetur, ' let the school be
continued.' It is not clear whether the notes on
these certificates are a record of what had been done
or orders to do something.
yearly accounts 8 for ' ^7 1 6s. cash paid to the six
poor, and in like cash (denariis) paid to William
Abbot, schoolmaster of the school of letters
(ludimagistro ludi litterarii) of Thornton, at
j£iO 8s.' — the halfpenny was dropped — ' so
allowed to him by warrant of Walter Mildemaye
and Robert Kylwey.' Two years later for the
highly Latinized substitute for grammar school,
Indus Jitterarius, the still more classically affected
palestra litterarla is used in the receiver's entry.
William Abbot was paid year by year all
through the reigns of Edward VI, Philip and
Mary, and up to 1574. No doubt he then
died, being, as he was 60 in 1548, no less than
86 years old. He was succeeded by John Kinge,
who is called by the august title of ' school-
master of Our Lady the Queen at Thorneton.'
He was paid for five years. Then came An-
thony Gate, in whose time, in 1587, the older
title of schoolmaster of the grammar school
(schole grammaticalis) was revived, and the pay-
ment was said to be made out of the church of
Penn by virtue of a warrant of William, Baron
of Burghley, Lord Treasurer of England, and of
Walter Mildmay, Chancellor of the Exchequer.
So some new proceedings had taken place in the
Exchequer resulting in the payment now being
charged on a particular piece of property, the
rectory of Penn, instead of the Crown revenues
of the county at large. Five years later the
payment is entered as made to James Smith,
' schoolmaster of the grammar school of the town
of Buckingham,' which looks as if there was an
attempt to transfer the payment from the small
village of Thornton, where no doubt the school
languished, to the county town. But if so, the
scheme was frustrated for a while ; for next year
the payment is again made to Anthony Gate,
' master at Thornton,' and so continues for four
years more. But from 1597 tne payment is
made again to James Smith, ' schoolmaster of the
grammar school of the town of Buckingham.'
This continues to the end of Elizabeth's reign.
Then it is made to Robert Tomlyns, also de-
scribed as ' schoolmaster of the grammar school
at the town of Buckingham,' and this is stated
to be done under warrant of Thomas, Lord
Buckhurst, and John Fortescue. So that again
there must have been an order definitely trans-
ferring the school, or at least its endowment,
from the small to the large place. Precedents
for this were set in the days of Edward VI by
the transfer of the endowment of St. Mary
Weeke Grammar School, Cornwall, to Launces-
ton, and in the days of Elizabeth by a decree of
the Duchy Court of Lancaster consolidating five
small neighbouring school endowments at Ponte-
fract. These have been followed in our own
time by the transfer of Hemsworth to Barnsley
under the Endowed Schools Acts.
8 Land Rev. Rec. Acct. Ser. i, bdle. 84.
146
SCHOOLS
By this process of absorption disappeared the
only proved pre-Reformation endowment in
Buckinghamshire ; a striking result of the dealings
of Edward VI with schools. For by robbing this
school of its lands and substituting a fixed pay-
ment, he prevented the income growing with
the growth of the riches of England ; and in
time, by the fall in the value of money, the
endowment was reduced from a fair living to a
miserable pittance. Buckingham, founded or
rcfounded about 1540, Stony Stratford in 1609,
Amersham in 1620, Marlow in 1628, Ayles-
bury about 1687, all suffered from the same
misfortune of a fixed income or an endowment
so limited as not to produce sufficient increment.
Wycombe, founded in 1 5 5 1 , suffered from its
endowment being mixed with that of the cor-
poration. All were starved.
ETON COLLEGE
It is impossible to give, in the space allotted,
a history of the greatest of the schools of the
world. Eton is fortunate in possessing one of
the earliest and one of the best of school his-
torians in Sir Henry Maxwell Lyte, K.C.B., the
virtual head of the Record Office under the
humble title of Deputy Keeper of the Records.
His history, the largest of school histories as be-
fits the largest of schools, originally published in
1875, was characterized by such profound
original research, and so skilful a use of the
results of research, as to make it a model for all
subsequent school historians to follow. New
editions in 1889 and 1904 have brought it up to
date and incorporated the results of later re-
searchers, particularly those of Mr. John Willis
Clark, Registrar of the University of Cam-
bridge, in his monumental work on the Architec-
tural History of the University of Cambridge.
With true historical propriety, this includes Eton
College, which owes its continued existence to
having been regarded as an integral part of the
University of Cambridge equally with its local
sister, King's College, Cambridge. His re-
searches into the history of the Eton buildings
necessarily threw much light on the general his-
tory of the school. The smaller and more recent
histories — Mr. W. Wasey Sterry's Annals »f
Eton, 1898, and Mr. Lionel Gust's History of
Eton College, 1 899 — are, as regards all but the
latest period, based almost entirely on Sir Henry
Maxwell Lyte's great work, and do not profess
to add anything about the earlier times from
original research, though giving many interesting
side-lights on the many-sided story of Eton's
later history. There is not place, therefore,
even if there were space here, for a new attempt
at a complete history of Eton. But in so large
a subject, which practically has only been handled
by one pen, there is plenty of scope for new dis-
coveries and treatment, especially as regards the
relations of Eton to the general lines of school
development and the true history of education in
England, which has been revolutionized since the
History of Eton was written.
For this purpose the original authorities have
been re-examined. As the result of examination
naturally some mistakes have been found and arc
here corrected. It has not been thought neces-
sary to draw attention in detail either to the
mistakes or the fact of a correction being made.
But wherever a date, name or fact differs from
that given by Sir H. Maxwell Lyte in what
may be called the authorized version of Eton
history, it may be taken for granted that, unless
otherwise stated, the ' revised version ' here
given is founded on the original audit rolls, or
the audit books which superseded the rolls temp.
Henry VIII. Some new documents have also
been discovered even at Eton, and new facts
brought to light. In particular, a considerable
quantity of new material has been brought to-
gether about the personality and careers of the
earlier masters and ushers, of which hitherto next
to nothing was known, or attempted to be
known. The result is that a mere dry catalogue
of ' names and nothing more ' with uncertain
circa dates, has been converted into a supplement
for a small Dictionary of National Biography.
Further, the current idea that the pre-Reforma-
tion schools were staffed by obscure and un-
learned clergy or monks (which last had nothing
to do with teaching school) and that their his-
tory merits no attention, receives a new reversal.
A large amount of new light has been thrown
on the learning^nd curriculum of pre-Reforma-
tion Eton from Eton documents discovered em-
bedded in the archives of other schools. Another
result of the re-examination of the documents in
the light of modern knowledge has been to show
how much greater and more prolonged than was
supposed has been the guidance and assistance
which Eton received from Winchester. While
the actual migration of half the college, fellows
and boys, from Winchester to Eton, accepted by
Maxwell Lyte from a Wykehamical source,1 has
already been shown from latdr Wykehamical
authorities u to have been a gross exaggeration,
the real transfusion of spirit and method is
shown to be far greater and more continuous
than was ever dreamed of. When we find that
not only the first three provosts and the first two
head masters, but also the first two ushers, and
out of the first twenty-five head masters no less
than twelve, and out of the ushers of the same
period, so far as they can be traced, at least eight
hailed from Winchester, we see that the influ-
ence of Winchester on the development of Eton
1 Mackenzie Walcott, miTiam of tfjktbam **d hii
Collegei, 135.
'• See below, p. 155.
'47
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
and the debt of Eton to Winchester is greater
than that of any one great school has ever been
to any other. Thcjilia pulchrior on the banks
of the Thames is in a far deeper sense a daughter
of the mater pulchra on the banks of the Itchen
than was imagined by those who on 19 October
1906 celebrated at New College the ancient
Amabilis Concordia between the two colleges of
Our Lady of Winchester and of Eton. Not
only was the foundation of Eton conceived and
executed by Wykehamists, but it was saved from
destruction and practically refounded by Wyke-
hamists, it was nursed by Wykehamists through
all its earlier troubles, and for 100 years drew the
majority and the most celebrated of its pastors
and masters from the ranks of those who were
sons of Wykeham in a double sense, as being
both scholars of Winchester and fellows of New
College.
First as to the original idea of Eton. We
may put aside all that has been written about
learning being in the lowest state of depression
before its foundation, or of the school being part
of a movement inaugurated by William of
Wykeham to rescue learning from the monks,
or to substitute the secular for the regular clergy
as teachers. The monasteries never had been,
as asserted, ' the principal seats of education in
England ' ; the monks never had been the chief
educators or teachers. The monasteries had at
one time, and to some extent, been homes of
learning, but only for the benefit of their own
members, and they remained schools of history,
as a pastime for the dreary hours of cloister life,
till the middle of the I5th century. Public
schools they never were. Even when, in succes-
sion to secular colleges, they governed public
schools or maintained them, they never main-
tained them out of their own revenues, but out
of revenues held in trust ; and the schoolmasters
were not monks but seculars, sometimes priests,
sometimes laymen. Those who have read in
former volumes of the Victoria County History
the accounts of the grammar schools of Win-
chester and Durham, of St. Albans and Bury St.
Edmunds, of Reading, Gloucester, and Bristol,
of Derby, of Thetford and Dunwich, all connect-
ed with various orders of the regular clergy, will
have seen that where the monks or the regular
canons obtained control of the schools, it was in
supersession of the secular clergy, and that even
then the actual teachers in the grammar or
public schools remained secular clerks, while
those taught in them were always secular clerks.
When we come to deal with the universities of
Oxford and Cambridge, it will be seen that they
were purely a secular creation, as were the
colleges in them. Though the new regular
orders of the friars early pushed themselves into
the universities, and though the secular colleges
of Merton and Balliol were imitated by the
monks in the regular colleges of Gloucester and
Durham, of St. Bernard and St. Mary, the
universities and colleges themselves, like the
cathedral and collegiate schools from which they
sprang, remained essentially secular. A good
deal of the illusion as to the schools being monastic
is due to the confusion of the term monastic
with the term ecclesiastic, of monks with clerics,
and of the seculars, i.e. secular clergy, with the
laity. Schools, colleges, and universities, were
matters of ecclesiastical cognizance and subject
to ecclesiastical law ; they were created by
clerics for clerics, and a layman by going to
school became pro tanto a cleric, in days when the
law, the treasury, the civil service, and diplomacy
were merely branches of the clerical service.
But to say that mediaeval schools were monastic
because they were ecclesiastical, or to confound
schoolmasters with monks, because they were
clerics, is much like confusing the modern clerk
with the modern cleric, or the modern learned
practitioners of law and medicine with the
modern clergy. When Eton was founded the
monastic ideal had long been on the wane.
Scarcely a single monastery had been founded in
the previous 100 years, while many old ones, in
the shape of alien priories, had been secularized
or converted into ecclesiastical establishments.
The foundation of Eton College was no new
departure. Eton furnished no new model in
institutions, it inaugurated no new era in educa-
tion, it marked no important phase in the history
of learning. It was the expression of the enthu-
siasm of a pious youth who wore a crown, under
the guidance of his ecclesiastical pastors and
masters, to connect his own name with an ever-
lasting monument of munificence. Its founder
never claimed originality for his foundation. In
the foundation charter of 1 1 October I44O,2
Henry VI says as plainly as possible that he was
imitating his ancestors' regard for the Church,
Whose royal devotion founded not only in this our
Kingdom of England, but also in divers foreign
regions, monasteries, churches and other pious places
... we also who . . . have now taken into our
hands the government of both our Kingdoms, have
from the very beginning of our riper age carefully
revolved in our mind how ... or by what royal
gift, according to the measure of our devotion and the
example of our ancestors, we could do fitting honour
to that Mistress and mother, to the pleasure of her
great Spouse, and at length ... it has become a
fixed purpose in our heart to found a college ... in
the parish church of Eton by Windsor not far from
our birth-place.
He, accordingly,
' to the praise honour and glory of the Crucified and
the exaltation of the most glorious Virgin Mary, His
mother, and the establishment of the most holy church,'
founded ' a college ... in and of the number of a
Provost and 10 priests, 4 clerks, 6 chorister boys, there
2 Pat. 19 Hen. VI, pt. ii, m. 20.
148
SCHOOLS
daily to serve at divine worship, and 25 poor and
needy (pauperes et indigentes) scholars to learn grammar
there, and further of 25 poor and disabled men to
pray for the souls of Henry V, Queen Katharine and
all his forefathers, and all the faithful departed ; also
of a Master or Teacher (Informator) in grammar to
teach the said needy scholars and all others whatso-
ever from any p.irt of our realm of England coming
to the said college freely (gratis), without exaction of
money or anything else.'
When the foundation was completed and its
objects were precisely stated, they were expressed
in the very words of William of Wykeham in
founding Winchester College, by saying that it
was to be a seminary for the better education of
an orthodox clergy.
The first charter was but a sketch. Under it
the provost and the rest were to be appointed
and removed according to statutes yet to be
made, and were to dwell in a certain site, 300 ft.
long by 260 ft. broad, next to Eton church-
yard ; the patronage of which had been recently
bought by the king. The patent named Henry
Sever as first provost, John Kette, clerk, William
Haston and William Dene as first priest-fellows,
Roger Flecknore, William Kente, John Haly-
wyn and Henry Cokkes as first choristers, and
William Stokkes and Richard Cokkes as the first
'needy scholars,' with two clerks and two
almsmen. The master or informer in grammar
was not named, probably because none had been
appointed. The college was incorporated under
the name of the ' Provost and King's College of
the Blessed Mary of Eton by Windsor.' To
that corporation the parish church was granted,
with power to transmute it into a collegiate
church and appropriate it to themselves, and
with licence in mortmain to hold other property
up to 1,000 marks, or £666 131. 4^. a year.
Two days later, 13 October 1440, the com-
missioners of the Bishop of Lincoln, in whose
huge diocese Buckinghamshire then was, viz.
William [Ayscough], Bishop of Salisbury,
Thomas Bekynton and Richard Andrew, doctors
of law, appointed 29 September, met the king's
proctor William Lynde at Eton, ' erected ' the
parish church into a collegiate church and
decreed that it should be appropriated to the
college. On 20 October, with the consent of
Bekynton, in whose jurisdiction, as Archdeacon
of Buckingham, the church was, and of Kette,
who was rector and resigned it, the commis-
sioners admitted Provost Sever to the rectory on
behalf of the college. The whole proceeding
was recited and confirmed by Pope Eugenius IV
at Florence ' at the King's humble supplication '
on 28 February 1440—1. The same day another
bull gave the king leave to provide and assign
whatever dress he liked for the provost, master,
and others, to grant the use of amices of grey,
of vzir or other furs, the distinctive dress of
cathedral or secular canons, and to make statutes
about wearing them whether in church or else-
where, while a third bull empowered the college
to farm out its lands to laymen as well as
ecclesiastics — the ordinary canon law forbidding
ecclesiastical property being farmed out to any
but ecclesiastics.
The first stone of a new church was laid by
Henry VI himself at some date unknown, but
before Passion Sunday, 2 April 1441,* when he
laid the first stone of the sister college, the King's
College of St. Nicholas at Cambridge ; the name
of which was due to the king's birthday being
6 December, the day of St. Nicholas, and
perhaps also to the chantry4 in Eton church
with an altar in honour of this patron saint of
schoolboys and learned clerks.
In all this there was nothing novel, nothing
exceptional. It was simply the ordinary process
of converting a parish church, the endowment of
a single priest, into a collegiate church, to be the
home of several priests, with the canonical free
grammar school and an almshouse attached.
There were scores of such colleges then existing
scattered through the country. Many of them,
like Beverley Minster, Yorkshire, Southwell
Minster, Nottinghamshire, dated from imme-
morial antiquity before the Conquest. But many
of the older foundations had been converted, like
St. Frideswide's, Oxford, and St. Paul's, Bedford,
into monasteries. So at the time Eton was
founded, probably the majority of these colleges
were of later date than the middle of the I3th
century. For ever since the monastic furore had
abated, and the founding of friaries had ceased,
and the reaction in favour of the secular clergy
had set in, that is from the middle of the 1 3th
century onwards, hardly a year had passed with-
out some similar institution being founded.
Walter of Merton in 1275 had taken a new
departure in founding at Merton College a
collegiate church in which education and not
religious worship was the primary purpose.
After that, education had tended to become
more and more prominent in the new founda-
tions. In 1382 William of Wykeham, in
founding Winchester College, had taken a
double new departure, first, in incorporating a
collegiate church of schoolboys instead of
' Robert Willis and John Willis Clark, Archil. Hilt,
of the Univ. of Camb. i, 321 :
Unctum qui lapidem poitquam ponebat in Eton
Hunc fixit clcrum commemorando mum ;
M Domini, c quater quadraginta monoi patet annit,
Pasiio cum Domini concelebrata fuit
Annul crat dccimut nonui, meniii ted Aprilii I
Hie flectentc genu Rcge Kcunda diet.
4 Lincoln Epis. Keg. Repingdon, fol. 251. In 14*5,
inhibition against the admission of anyone to chantry
at altar of St. Nicholas in church of St. Mary Eton,
pending a suit between Kathcrinc widow of Sir
Thomas Aylesbury and Sir Thomas Wauton, Sheriff
of Bedfordshire and others. One wonders whether this
chantry priest was not also a grammar school master.
149
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
university students, and, secondly, in directly
connecting this collegiate-church-school with a
university students' collegiate church. He had
also set, not the first example by any means —
the example which may have been the first was
set by John Grandison, Bishop of Exeter, in the
foundation of Ottery St. Mary's College and
Grammar School in 1332 — but the first example
on a large scale of finding ready provision for
educational endowments in the purchase of alien
priories. The direct model and mother of Eton
was Winchester College, its grandmother was
Merton College, but its ultimate model was to
be found in the cathedral churches of York and
London and of Winchester and Canterbury be-
fore these passed into the hands of the monks.
The alien priories, religious houses in England
belonging to monasteries abroad, nearly all in
France, had to pay in some cases their whole
surplus net revenues, in others fixed pensions, to
the mother houses abroad ; and these revenues
were naturally made the subject of taxation by
the French kings, and so the revenues and re-
sources of England were used against itself. In
Wykeham's time these alien priories were only
sequestrated during the war, and he had to
obtain papal bulls authorizing the foreign houses
to sell, and he had to pay a good price for what
he bought. Henry V confiscated them wholly
to the Crown. It has been alleged by Anthony
Wood that Henry V intended ' to have built a
college in the castle of Oxford . . . and there-
unto to have annected all the alien priories in
England.' This must be an egregious exaggera-
tion. An endowment of that amount would
have been overwhelming. The statement seems
to be an enlargement of John Rows, the War-
wick chronicler, who wrote in 1485 that
Henry V ' intended to found a noble college at
Oxford in which there should be deep research
in the seven sciences,' the ordinance for which
Rows himself in his youth had seen. But, con-
sidering that some fifty of the most splendid
collegiate churches, colleges, and schools were
richly endowed out of the alien priories, it is
quite impossible that Henry V could ever have
intended to bestow them all on one foundation.
The story shows, however, how the foundation
of colleges was in the air.
Henry VI succeeded to the throne at nine
months old on i September 1422. So full
were the Privy Council of the advantages of
school education that three years later6 they
directed that all the heirs of all the lords of the
realm, at least of the rank of barons, holding in
chief, who as minors were in the wardship of
the Crown, should be sent up and kept about the
person of the king and in his house at his ex-
pense, accompanied by at least one master. It
is possible, when we remember how Richard
Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, the king's tutor,
travelled in Italy, and how Cardinal Beaufort,
his uncle, was at home abroad, that the Privy
Council were consciously imitating the famous
Giocosa or Home of Joy, the palace school
started by Vittorino da Feltre at Mantua in
1423, where he taught the children of the reign-
ing Marquis Gonzaga and others, from the age
of three to the age of twenty-three. Henry, poor
child, was only two years old when the Lady
Alice Boteler was appointed to teach him
courtesy and good breeding and other things,
with full 'leave to chastise us reasonably from
time to time as the case may require,' and on
1 6 March 1426 her salary was increased by £40
a year, charged on the fee-farm of Great Yar-
mouth. On i June 14.28,** i.e. as soon as he
ceased at seven years old to be an infant and
became a boy, the lady was superseded by
Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, who
was to teach him ' bons moeurs, lettrure, Ian-
gage, nurture et courtoisie, et autres virtus et
enseignements,' or, as it was expressed also in
English, ' shall do his devoir and diligence to
teche the Kyng, and make hym to be taught,
nurture, lettrure (literature), language, and other
manere of cunnyng as his age shall suffre him to
more comprehende, suche as it fitteth so greet a
prince to be lerned of.' Needless to say that ' our
reasonable chastisement as other princes of our
realm and other are accustomed to be chastised
... if we estrange ourselves from learning and
commit faults,' was not forgotten. This Richard
Beauchamp contemplated a ' regal college of
Trinity ' at Guy's Cliff, but he contented him-
self with a chantry of two priests. Henry
Beaufort, Wykeham's successor at Winchester
and Henry's favourite uncle, had re-endowed,
and rebuilt on an ampler scale, the famous alms-
house of St. Cross by Winchester. He had
also assisted or authorized Winchester College to
increase its endowment by the acquisition of the
alien priory of Andover as early as 1413, though
the college only entered into possession in 1437.
The Earl of Suffolk who, after Duke Humphrey,
was practically Prime Minister and was one of
Henry's chief advisers and managers as regards
buildings, himself founded at Ewelme in Oxford-
shire in 1439 a hospital for 12 poor men with 2
priests to look after them, one a master and the
other ' a well disposed man apt and able to
teachyng, to teach and inform children in the
faculty of gramer.' Thomas Kemp, Archbishop
of York, in 1431 obtained licence in mortmain
for a college at his native place Wye, in Kent,
which included a grammar school. Above all,
Henry Chicheley, Archbishop of Canterbury,
the earliest successful product of Winchester and
New College, for whom, as his baptizer,
Henry VI had especial regard, founded a smaller
'ActsofP.C.m, 170, 28 June 1425.
Ibid. 296.
150
SCHOOLS
Winchester at his birthplace, Higham Ferrers,
in 1422-5, a college of a master and 7 fellows,
' with masters in grammar and song for all coming
there,' and an almshouse of 1 2 poor men, and en-
dowed it with the alien priory of Mersea in
Essex ; while he also founded a smaller New
College at Oxford in the college of All Souls
in 1432, also partly endowed with alien priories
bought from the Crown. But perhaps the
most striking of the new cluster of educational
foundations was that of William Byngham,
rector of St. John Zachary, London, in the
Domus Dei or God's house at Cambridge.
In his petition in 1439 for licence in mortmain
for the foundation of a college of a master and
24 scholars who were to be trained in grammar,
he said that he had found all over the country
grammar schools, formerly flourishing, now fallen
into abeyance for lack of proper teachers. He
therefore established this, the first training college
on record in England, anticipating the secondary
training colleges recently started by some 470
years. Grammar was to be taught, not only
because, as in Wykeham's day, it was ' the key
to the Scriptures, the gate to the liberal sciences,
and to theology, mistress of them all,' but
because ' it was necessary in dealing with law
and other difficult matters of state, and also the
means of mutual communication and conversa-
tion between us and strangers and foreigners.'
The scholars when trained were to issue from
the college to teach schools all over the country.
This remarkable experiment came to an un-
timely end, at the hands of Henry himself,
being remove! to make way for King's College
chapel, and eventually absorbed in Christ's
College.
With these examples set him by those who
had brought him up as a boy and guided him
as a young man, Henry only followed the
fashion in founding a school at Eton and a
college in connexion with it at Cambridge. The
particular form the two took, and the whole
conception as well as execution of the design of
Eton and King's, is due first and foremost to
Archbishop Chicheley and next to the other
Wykehamists who managed the domestic affairs
of the kingdom at that time, Thomas Bekynton,
William Say, Richard Andrews, and Andrew
Holes or Hulse. The actual instrument was
Bekynton. Admitted a scholar of Winchester
in 1403 and of New College in 1405-6, he re-
mained a law fellow of New College, student of
civil and canon law and doctor of the same till
1420, when he became chancellor of the Pro-
tector, Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, and was
made Archdeacon of Buckingham in 1422. In
1423 he was Dean of Arches and with his deputy,
the celebrated writer on canon law, William
Lyndwood, assisted in persecuting heretics. In
1432 he acted as ambassador to France. In that
year Henry VI, then ten years old, appears as
founder of the University of Caen. In 1433
Bekynton was prolocutor of Convocation. As
archdeacon of the county in which Eton was
situate, as well as royal secretary, he took a leading
part in the foundation of the college. The nego-
tiations with the pope for the bulls connected with
it were conducted by Andrew Hulse, royal proctor
at the papal court, a scholar of Winchester
1407 and of New College 1414. Hulse was
nominated by the king for the see of Coutances
on two occasions, but the first nomination mis-
carried by the tardiness of the messenger, and the
next was on false information of a vacancy which
had not occurred, though for the greater part of
a year Bekynton wrote to him as his venerable
father as if he was actually bishop elect.6 So
poor Hulse never attained any higher dignity
than that of canon of Chichester and chancellor
of Salisbury Cathedral. One at least of the
messengers between them, John Burgh, was ako
a Wykehamist. Richard Andrew, Official of
the court of Canterbury, Bekynton 's colleague in
the commission to appropriate Eton Church, and
his subsequent successor as archdeacon and Privy
Seal, was also a Wykehamist, and at this very
time was the first warden of All Souls College,
Oxford.
In October 1440 the king was only 18 years
of age, and he speaks of the foundation as a ' sort
of first-fruits of his taking the government on
himself.' We may, therefore, surely credit the
initiative in the foundation of Eton to Chicheley
and Bekynton, just as we may credit to them
the foundation of the university of Caen in
1432-7, and the university of Bordeaux in
1441, of which Henry was also the nominal
founder.
The instructions to the English envoys at the
Council of Basle found among Bekynton's letters
were probably drawn up by him. One of them
specially refers to the alien priories, apparently in
contemplation of the use to which they were to
be put in connexion with Eton and King's. If
proposals were made for the repeal of any of the
statutes of the realm, especially those concerning
priories or possessions of aliens, the envoys were
to say they had no instructions. They could,
however, as from themselves, but not as ambassa-
dors, nor as representing the king, say that ' ac-
cording to the ancient laws of England, if any-
one held property on conditions, and failed to
fulfil the conditions, the donor could re-enter
on the property, and the churches and monasteries
of aliens failing to perform the conditions on
which they were held, the gifts were ifsa facto
revoked and granted to the Crown.' Yet
Henry V had intended to grant them ' not to
their former abuses, but to pious uses ' and obtained
' This seems to be the explanation of what puzzled
the editor of Bekynton's correspondence, that he, the
senior, addressed his junior, Hulse, as 'venerable father.'
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
a bull from Martin V enabling him to do so, and
also to compensate the former possessors, and had
actually offered this compensation, and ' even
now, if they made humble application to the
king, they might receive it.' Needless to say
they did not apply and did not get it. But the
bulk of the property did revert to ' pious uses,'
and Eton and King's represents a large slice of
it. In 1437 Bekynton acted as king's secretary,
and in 1439 was formally appointed to that
office. In that year he accompanied Cardinal
Beaufort on an embassy to France. Immediately
after his return the foundation of Eton began.
The first step was the purchase of the rectory of
Eton in September 1440. Next month came,
as we saw, the formal foundation charter and the
conversion of the parish, into a collegiate, church.
So exact was the imitation of Wykeham's foun-
dation that as he had made a fellow of Merton,
then by far the greatest college in the university,
the first warden of his college at Winchester, so
resort was had to a fellow of the same college
for the first provost of Eton. This was Henry
Sever, fellow in 1419, and proctor of the univer-
sity in 1427. Eton writers have been somewhat
unkind to his memory, speaking of him as a
person of no importance. But he was one of
the great men of the day. A king's clerk, prob-
ably in Chancery, he already held a canonry in
Bridgnorth collegiate church from 1435, the
wardenship of Trinity College, or collegiate
church of Stratford on Avon from 1436, and a
canonry in the collegiate church of St. Stephen's,
Westminster, from 1438. Like Wolsey after-
wards, he was king's almoner. When he left
the provostship in 1442 it was to become Chan-
cellor of Oxford University, and in 1449 he was
Chancellor of St. Paul's and Dean of Bridgnorth.
In 1453 he became Warden of Merton, in which
capacity his benefactions were so extensive that
he was hailed as second founder. He died 6 July
1471 in possession of all these offices.
Sir Edward Creasy has been severely rebuked
for calling him, in his Memorials of Eminent
Etonians, ' Dean of Westminster,' when West-
minster had an abbot, and no dean till a century
later. But it was not uncommon to speak of
the canons of the royal chapel or collegiate
church of St. Stephen, which afterwards became
the House of Commons, as canons of West-
minster, and the term Dean of Westminster
was therefore correct, if Sever had been dean, but
the list of deans does not seem to include his
name.
There seems to be no possibility of ascertaining
when exactly the school itself began, and as only
two scholars are named in the first charter of
October 1440, it does not seem likely that the
school was then opened ; indeed, there were no
endowments then given to support it, nor any
buildings in which to hold it. The bull, in
exact imitation of a similar one given to Win-
chester College, enabling the college to let its
lands to laymen, was given before there were
any lands to let. A large number of the papal
bulls obtained by Wykeham for Winchester
College related to the right of services in the
college chapel, burial in its cloisters, a belfry and
bells and retaining burial fees, &c., and were
unnecessary for Eton, which, inheriting the rights
of a parish church, numbered these among them.
Winchester had the usual building bull ; a bull
in the same form which afterwards so exercised
Luther, except that it granted only 100 days'
relaxation of penance and an indulgence of 40
years,not perpetual indulgence, to those who visited
the place and contributed to the buildings. On
28 May 1441 a similar bull was granted for
those visiting Eton and contributing to Eton on
the same terms as were given to those who on
the day of St. Peter ad Vincula, 1 August, visited
the church of St. Peter ad Vincula in Rome. It
is a disadvantage of this legislation by reference
that we do not know what those terms were.
We soon find Bekynton writing to press for
greater advantages, and on 9 May 1442 a 'plenary
indulgence ' was granted to those visiting Eton
on the Assumption of the Virgin (15 August)
and contributing. The contributions were,
however, to be divided between papal and royal
objects, viz. three-fourths for a crusade against
the Turks, one-fourth only to the king's college.
Moreover it was limited to the king's life. So
once again Bekynton had to ask for more, and
on 1 1 May 1444 the bull was made perpetual.
But the king's ideas continually enlarging, three
years later a further bull, 25 January 1446-7,
was obtained, giving seven years' and seven
Lents' indulgence to those who visited Eton on
any of the Virgin's feast days, and on St. Nicholas'
Day (6 December) or the Translation of Edward
the Confessor.
As soon as the king had got his bull for found-
ing Eton, he founded his other college at Cam-
bridge, of a rector and 12 scholars, by patent of
12 February 1440—1, incorporating them as ' the
rector and scholars of the King's College of
St. Nicholas of Cambridge,' with William Mil-
lington as first rector, and John Kyrkeby and
William Haytclyffe, who seem to have been all
Yorkshiremen, as the first scholars or probationary
fellows. There was at first no organic connexion
between the two colleges, as there was between
Winchester and New College ; and if, as seems
likely, the influence of Chicheley was at first the
predominant influence in the foundation, it is
possible that none was intended. While in both
patents power was reserved to increase the num-
bers, no power was reserved to alter the founda-
tion. Moreover, it is probable that at this time the
prudence of his council prevailed, and Henry's
advisers had no intention of letting him emulate
the stupendous size of Wykeham's foundations
with their 70 scholars each, but made him con-
152
SCHOOLS
tent himself with the more modest proportions
of 25 scholars at Eton and 12 at Cambridge.
Indeed, the earliest connexion of Eton with
a university was with Oxford, for on 3 February
1441-2 the king granted the manor of ' Ponyng-
ton ' (Hants) parcel of the alien priory of
Ogbourne to John Carpenter, master or warden
of St. Anthony's Hospital, London, for the
exhibition of five scholars at Oxford (each having
lod. a week until he took the degree of B.A.)
who had received the rudiments of grammar at
Eton, and were appointed according to the Eton
statutes. So the earliest edition of these statutes
provided for scholars to Oxford instead of to
King's, Cambridge. This grant was apparently
resumed at the beginning of the reign of Ed-
ward IV, and these Eton scholarships at Oxford
then ceased.
On 5 March 1440-1 'the Kyngc's College
of oure Ladye of Eton besyde Wyndesore ' was
endowed by letters patent bestowing on it a
great mass of property which had belonged to
alien priories. A large part consisted only of
annual pensions payable from English cells to
their principal houses abroad. Thus the first
item is an annual pension of 1 8 marks from the
alien vicarage of Marlon, the next are pensions
of 40*. from Aveley Church, Essex, and from
Fulbourn Church, Cambridgeshire, and the whole
tithes of Bures St. Mary, Essex, all belonging to
the alien priory of Panfield in Essex. Then
came an annual tribute which the priory of
Montacute was bound to pay the Crown for the
ancient apportus (i.e. export) ' payable in time of
peace to the head house of that priory in parts
beyond the sea,' and a similar apportus of 20s.
which the Prior of Goldcliff had to pay to his
head house. Next followed three alien priories
which were bodily transferred to the new college,
viz. ' the alien priory and manor of Toftes,' Nor-
folk, of Sporle, Norfolk, and of Brimpsfield,
Gloucestershire. Then came the manors of
Blakenham, Suffolk, and Cottisford, Oxfordshire,
part of the alien priory of Ogbourne (Okeburn),
i Hampshire ; all the manors in Wiltshire belonging
to the Dean of Mortain ; and 1 31. \d. the apportus
due from Thetford Priory to Cluny. There
followed the rent of ^8 13;. \d. payable by Sir
William, Lord of Lovell, kt., ' for the custody of
the alien priory of Minster Lovell, with its appur-
tenances, granted to him for 18 years from the
death of Jane, late Queen of England, and the
reversion of the same priory when it falls in.'
The rest of the items are similar, a large number
consisting, at first, of the yearly rents only of
alien priories, leased like that of Minster Lovell
to the neighbouring landed proprietors fora term
of years, the full benefit of which would only
accrue to the college on the expiration of the
leases. The actual rents accruing at once
amounted 10^513 2s. id., in addition to four
whole priories, two manors, and some odd
lands given in immediate possession, worth per-
haps between them another £100 a year. The
total income was slightly larger than that on
which Winchester College was started.
On Saturday, 31 July 1441, 'Henry VI went
to Winchester College, where ' he was present at
first vespers and next day at mass and second
vespers and offered 131. 4^.,' a mark of gold, the
usual royal offering. The result of this week-end
visit was momentous to Eton. For it resulted in
the transfer in October or November 1 44 1 of Wil-
liam Wayneflete, the then head master of Win-
chester, to Eton, and it was to Wayneflete rather
than to Henry VI that Eton owed its final con-
stitution, its preservation from destruction, and its
restitution by Ed ward IV, and the completion of its
buildings. It is by no means certain that Wayne-
flete went to Eton, as commonly stated, as the
first head master. The evidence strongly suggests
that he went, not as head master, but as provost.
But a curious darkness overhangs the whole of
Wayneflete's life until he became head master of
Winchester. It is extremely doubtful, to say the
least of it, whether he ever was, as has been
asserted, a scholar at Winchester or of New Col-
lege. His family name is said to have been
Pattene, otherwise Barbour. No such name is
found in the Scholars' Register at Winchester,
unless he can be identified with William Pattene
of Patney, Wiltshire, admitted in 1403. The
identification is unlikely, as it would make him
at least ninety-five years old when he died, and
it would be very strange, as it is certain that
Wainfleet in Lincolnshire was his birthplace, or
at least his breeding-place, that he should have
been Pattene of that ilk in Wiltshire. Nor is
his name to be found in the records of New Col-
lege as a scholar or fellow. It is a rather violent
assumption that he was a commoner at either
college. There are nearly complete lists of trip
commoners at Winchester to be deduced from the
steward of hall's books, which show those dining
in hall in each week, and neither Wayneflete,
Barbour, nor Pattene, occurs among them. It is
doubtful if there were any commoners at New
College at the time. None appear in the hall
books there, nor does Wayneflete's name appear
in them. On the other hand it is certain that
Wayneflete was at Oxford from a letter addressed
about April 1447 to him by the university8 when
Provost of Eton, in which they say, ' we believe
that you have always before your eyes the great
love by which you are bound to the mother who
7 Not 1440, as given in Chandler's Life of H'atne-
tttte and Mackenzie Walcott's William of Wykeham and
His Colleges, 1 36 ; Kirby, Annals «/ Winchester College,
192, and Maxwell Lyte's Eton, 5. The dates relating
to the Eton foundation have been as much confused
as those of Winchester, owing to its not being ob-
served that the year of the king did not coincide with
the year of our Lord.
• Ef'ut. AcaJ. (Oxf. Hist. Soc.), i, 158.
'53
20
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
conceived you in her spiritual womb and brought
you forth into the light of knowledge, and until
you grew to the strength of manhood, in which
you excel, nourished you with most precious
meals, with the greatest favour and the alimony
of all the sciences.' This almost looks as if
Wayneflete had even spent his school days as well
as his college days at Oxford. Wayneflete first
appears in public records8" on receiving letters of
protection when sent in the train of Robert
Fitz Hugh, D.D., Warden of the King's Hall
at Cambridge, and John Bonner, Dec.D., and
others, on an embassy to the pope at Rome, to
explain why the force of 500 spears and 5,000
archers raised by Cardinal Beaufort for a crusade
against the Hussites of Bohemia had been diverted
to English purposes, viz. the 'necessarie eschu-
ing ' of the loss of France. The letters of pro-
tection are dated 15 July 1429, and describe
Wayneflete as Bachelor of Laws. Next year
there are entries in the Bursars' Roll at Winches-
ter of ' 2s. 6d.t for the expenses of Sir John
Edmond riding to Oxford to inquire and com-
municate with divers people to get a Magister
Informator,' and of '61. for expenses of Sir
Thomas Baylemond riding to Oxford in the
month of June to provide an Informator, includ-
ing 2s. for the hire of a horse for the purpose for
6 days.' For the quarter beginning 24 June
1430" 'Mr. William Wanneflete ' was paid 501.
as ' teacher of the scholars {Informator scolarium).'
So that he was imported direct from Oxford.
He continued, under curious variants of name,
Wanflet, Waneflett, Weyneflete, Wayneflete, to
be paid as head master jCio a year for eleven
and a quarter years, until Michaelmas 1441.
From Michaelmas 1441 to 1442 the head master
was Thomas Alwyn or Walwayn of Newport
Pagnell, Buckinghamshire, who, for five years,
24 June 1425 to 24 June 1430, had been
Wayneflete's predecessor in the head-mastership.
This looks as if the vacancy was suddenly
created and resort was therefore had to an old
and tried man to fill it. Wayneflete occurs
several times in the Winchester Hall books as a
guest at the high table in September and October
1441. He then seems to have gone to Eton,
a year earlier than has been hitherto supposed.10
If he went as head master, this also makes Eton
School a year older than it has hitherto been
credited with being. But the school did not
begin probably till 1443. In 1441 there were
no buildings, and apparently no site on which to
erect buildings, to accommodate the boys or the
masters.
te Acts ofP.C. iii, 347.
9 Not in 1429 as Walcott, Kirby, and others.
10 Walcott's Wm. ofWykcham and His Colleges, 135;
Maxwell Lyte, Hist, of Eton (1899), 17 ; Diet. Nat.
Biog., &c., all put him down as going to Eton in
1442. Chandler's Life of Wayneftete on the other
hand takes him there a year too early, in 1440.
The Eton College building accounts are
happily extant. A wages book, headed ' Day
book of the first year ' (Jornale anno printo),
showing that it was started at the very beginning
of the works, begins on 3 July 1441 and extends
to 5 February 1441-2. The workmen11 'con-
sisted mainly of labourers, of whom 32 were em-
ployed weekly until the middle of November.
. . . The number of labourers may perhaps
indicate the digging of foundations, which are
specially mentioned in the next year.' There
were a few masons and carpenters employed,
but it is conjectured that they were employed
on the old church, which was being enlarged
and beautified. It is probable that the founda-
tions dug in 1441-2 were those of the new
collegiate church ; for the rest of the site was
not yet fully conveyed. On the Conversion of
St. Paul (25 January) 1441-2 la the first of a
series of Private Acts of Parliament confirmed
the grants already made by the king of the old
parish church and of the endowment and the
incorporation of the college. But it was not
till six days later, by patent of 31 January
1441—2, that a further part of the site was
acquired by the conveyance of Huntercomb's
garden (Hundercombs gardyn), Rolf's shaw
(Rolveshawe), and a tenement of Walter, while
on 9 May 1442 the grant of the Kingsworth,
which is identified as part of the playing fields,
completed the site. These grants, with others
of pardon for introducing papal bulls, of fairs
and markets and exemption from divers royal
and other liabilities and imposts, were confirmed
by Private Act of Parliament 5 March 1445-6."
On 1 6 April 1442 digging foundations was still
the main work, payment being made for 31
loads of loam ' from the foundacion of the
college,' and on 22 July 1442 there were still 45
labourers digging foundations ; though 53 free-
masons, 15 rough masons, and 45 carpenters,
also hard at work, show extensive buildings in
progress. Apart from the church, however, the
school and college buildings were wholly of
brick with quoins and mullions of stone. It
was not till April 1442 that ground was hired
at Slough to make a brick kiln, nor till 28 May
1442 that the first instalment of bricks, 66,000,
was delivered. In that year 463,600 bricks and
in 1443-4 over a million bricks were taken ; so
that it is to the years 1442—4 that the building
of the school and college must be attributed.
Even if the school was begun first it could not
conceivably have been ready for use before
" Robert Willis and John Willis Clark, Arch. Hist,
of the Univ. ofCamb. i, 380-5.
11 The date is given in the second Act of Parlia-
ment passed 5 Mar. 1445-6 ; Heywood and Wright,
Statutes, 415.
14 Ibid. 414-59. Through the usual mistake of
the year of the king they call this the Parliament
of 1444.
SCHOOLS
Michaelmas 1442, and was most probably not
ready before Michaelmas 1443.
The register of Thomas Bekynton records
that on Sunday, 13 October11 1443, he was
consecrated ' in the old collegiate church of
Blessed Mary of Eton,' and ' afterwards he cele-
brated his first mass in pontificals, in the new
church of the Blessed Mary there, not yet half
built, under a tent at an altar erected directly
above the spot where King Henry VI laid the
first stone. And he held a feast in the new
fabric of the college there on the north side,
while the chambers were not yet partitioned
underneath.' That is, the chapel was not half
finished, and the chambers only had their walls up.
It is suggested by Mr. J. W. Clark that ' the
north side and chambers' referred to were the
school and chambers in the school yard which
preceded the present Long Chamber and head
master and usher's chambers and the old Lower
School underneath it. But there is good reason
to believe that they were not in the school yard
till the 1 6th century, while there is positive
evidence that the school was not finished two
years later.
There is no documentary evidence of Wayne-
flete's ever being head master. The first men-
tion of him in documents at Eton is as provost,
on 2 May 1443, when he agreed with his friend
Bekynton for the exemption of the college and
parish from his archidiaconal authority, which
is still vested in the provost ; while by deed of
10 September 1443 £i 2s. lid. a year, in lieu
of the visitation fees, was settled on the arch-
deaconry, payable out of the manor of Bledlow.
On 30 November 1 443 Wayneflete, as pro-
vost, and William Lynde, a fellow and clerk of
the works, contracted with Robert Whetelcy, the
chief carpenter, for all the carpentering work of
ten chambers on the east side of the college, of
the hall and cloisters, and for making seven
turrets, showing that the east side, though more
advanced than the north side, was not yet habit-
able. The public records bring Wayncflcte's
provostry back even further, for while the house-
hold accounts w show Henry Sever as one of the
royal chaplains receiving a gown from Christmas
1440, and at Whitsuntide 1442 receiving 4 casks
of wine as provost, at Christmas 1442 16> Wayne-
flete received a livery, described next year
as 5 yards of violet cloth as provost of Eton,
while Sever continued to receive a gown as
royal chaplain. This shows that Wayne-
flete became provost at some date between
Whitsuntide and Christmas 1442, probably at
Michaelmas, as Sever was made Chancellor of
u Bekynton'i Corresfxmdence (Roll§ Ser.), i, p. cxix.
Not Nov. as Maxwell Lyte, op. cit. 19. The day is
specially said to have been the Translation of St.
Edward (the Confessor).
"• Exch. K.R. Wardrobe Accts. 19-20 Hen. VI.
"•Ibid. 2I-* Hen. VI.
Oxford towards the end of the year. This
would leave less than a year for Wayneflete to
be head master, if he ever was head master.
On 21 December 1443 Bishop Bekynton,
with the Earl of Suffolk, as commissioners of
the founder, formally gave statutes to the
college and swore Wayneflete to them as pro-
vost, who in turn took the oaths of the other
members of the college, namely 5 fellows, 2
clerks, 2 choristers, and 1 1 scholars. But it is
specially recorded that, as the buildings were not
finished, nor the full endowment received, the
king dispensed the college temporarily from the
observance of some of the statutes, viz. (i) as to
keeping the intended full number of fellows,
scholars, and poor ; (2) the fellows being only 5,
instead of 10, they were only to be bound to 5
masses a day instead of 10 ; (3) the scholars
were not required to say the prayers and adora-
tions set down for them till the morrow of the
Epiphany, ' so that meanwhile they may be in-
structed and fully informed in them,' while (4)
c as neither church nor hall, towers, chambers,
chests, common archives, keys, bursary, treasury,
nor gates were yet fully built,' the statutes relat-
ing to these were suspended. At the same time
a special statute provided that as John Clerk had
given up a sufficiently fat living (beneficio satis
competent?) to take a fellowship, he should be vice-
provost not for a year only, as the statutes or-
dained, but for life. This first and perpetual
vice-provost was another Wykehamist, a native
of Newbury, scho'ar of Winchester 1406, of
New College 1410 ; and the benefice he gave up
was that of Adderbury, Oxfordshire, one of the
richest New College livings. The proceedings
were witnessed by Richard Andrew, LL.U.,
then King's Secretary ; Walter Lyhert or Le
Hart, Provost of Oriel, and William Say, an-
other Wykehamist, then Dean of St. Paul's.
It has been constantly repeated that Wayneflete
took with him to Eton half Winchester College,
viz. 5 fellows and 35 scholars. It was reserved
for Mr. Kirby,17 an Etonian, but Bursar of Win-
chester College, to show that this was almost
certainly untrue, and quite certainly without
authority. There are no such ' gaps in the
[Winchester] Register which such a migration
would make ; only six scholars are recorded in
the margin of the Register to have quitted Win-
chester for Eton. It is possible that the number
of 35 may have been made up from the ranks of
the commoners and day-boys, but no evidence
exists as to this. Nor is it recorded of any fel-
low that he quitted it for Eton. Two old
scholars exchanged fellowships of New College
for fellowships of Eton College.' Even this
reduced statement is not quite accurate. Only
" Kirby, Annalt of Winchester Coll. (1894), 199.
In the last edition of Maxwell Lyte (1899), p. 17,
Mr. Kirby's statement has been substituted for the
older story.
'55
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
five scholars are in fact recorded as quitting
Winchester for Eton. The sixth and senior
Winchester scholar who went to Eton had
been admitted at Winchester I February 1432-3,
and had left the school for some unspecified time
before going to Eton. ' Recessit ad obsequium
primo, postea ad collegium de Eton.' He had
presumably failed to get off to New College, and
abandoned the path of learning for secular service
of some kind, presumably with some magnate,
but now returned to it, on prospect of a fellow-
ship at King's College. Also, of the two fellows
of New College mentioned by Mr. Kirby, neither
went at or near the opening of Eton. One,
Foster or Forster, went to Eton not in 1443 but
in 1453, and not as fellow but as head master ;
the other, Morer, went up to New College as a
scholar in 1443, and only became a fellow of
Eton in 1465. So that neither of these can be
reckoned in the migration. Nor is it at all
probable that the number of 35 or anything like
it was made up from commoners. As to com-
moners proper, commoners in college at Win-
chester were limited by statute to ten in number.
The hall-books of the time, showing those who
dined in hall every week, are extant. They
show that there was no clear-out of commoners.
Fauley, who appeared for the last time in hall in
the second week in October 1441, when, by the
way, Mr. William Wayneflete was dining as a
guest, showing that he had not yet gone to Eton,
though he had ceased to be head master of Win-
chester, may probably be identified with Richard
Fauley of Dorsetshire, who was elected from
Eton to King's on 26 September 1444 at the age
of sixteen. Only one other commoner, Lysle,
left during the same time. The possible migra-
tion of commoners in college is therefore limited
to two, and is probably limited to one. There
were, however, other commoners attending the
school, living in St. Elizabeth's College, next
door, and perhaps elsewhere, and there were
probably oppidans or town boys attending as day-
boys. Of these we have no record. It is not,
however, very probable that any, and it is certain
that not many, could have gone to the new school
as scholars, since only 1 1 scholars in all were
sworn to the statutes. They were Thomas
Constantin ; John Pay n, a Londoner, of St. Alban's,
Wood Street, who had been a Winchester
scholar from 1438 ; Thomas Say, a relation of
the Dean of St. Paul's ; Thomas Seggefeld ;
John Goldsmith, who went to King's next year ;
Edward Hancok, who also went to King's next
year, whom one suspects of being a relative of
Thomas Hancok of Pusey, Berkshire,a Winchester
scholar in 1447 ; Richard Fauley, from Dorset,
one of the IQ filii nobilium ; William Stock from
Warmington, Northamptonshire ; John Plentie
from Warwickshire ; and John Brown from
Berkshire, who went to King's in 1444 ; and
William Wether, who is untraced. However,
it is really remarkable to find that in a ' tradition '
of this sort there is so much substratum of fact,
that it is true to the extent of about one-six-
teenth ; and that five scholars, one ex-scholar,
and probably one commoner of Winchester did
actually go to give Eton a start, and import
Wykehamist traditions there. But of the six
scholars who went in 1443, only three were ever
more than colourably scholars at Eton. For
three of them, John Langport, Richard Cove,
and Robert Dummer, had already been admitted
scholars of King's on 19 July 1443. This was
under the second charter for that college, dated
nine days before, 10 July 1443, which converted
the rector, William Millington, into a provost,18
changed the name from St. Nicholas College to
that of St. Mary and St. Nicholas, augmented
its numbers from 12 to 70, and bound it to
Eton as New College was bound to Winchester,
so that only scholars of Eton were admissible to
it. John Langport, who came from Twyford,
now almost part of Winchester, had been at
Winchester someeleven years. Robert Dummer,19
also a Hampshire boy, had been eight years at
Winchester, and Richard Cove of Bromham,
Wiltshire, had been there seven years. They were,
therefore, Winchester 'thicks,' who, in default
of being able to get off to New College, Oxford,
were thought good enough for ' New College,
Cambridge,' as it was often called. Langport
became vice-provost of King's.20 The two other
Winchester scholars were John Payn above
mentioned, and Richard Roche of Taunton, who
must have been a boy of exceptional promise.
Admitted to Winchester in 1439, he went to
Eton on St. Margaret's Day, 20 July 1443, an<^
was too young to be sworn to the statutes in
December 1443, being only fifteen years old
when admitted a scholar of King's, 26 September
1444. He afterwards became vice-provost of
Eton.
The statutes cannot have been strictly observed
at the first election to King's in July 1 443, as the
other two out of five elected were Master Wil-
liam Chedworth, M.A., already for 20 years
fellow of Merton, Oxford, who three years
afterwards became provost of King's, and then
Bishop of Lincoln and the founder or endower
of Cirencester Grammar School ; and Thomas
Rotherham,21 afterwards Lord Chancellor, Arch-
18 Mullinger, Univ. of Camb. i, 306. Mr. Mul-
linger says that William Millington was ejected because
he objected to the exclusive connexion established with
Eton by the statutes ; but as this connexion is expressly
stated in the charter in which he is named as first provost,
the statement cannot be reconciled with the facts.
19 Misread into Dommetge by Kirby in Annals, and
also in Scholars, 57 ; a mistake naturally followed by
the Eton historian Mr. Wasey Sterry.
10 B.M. Cole MSS. 5814-7, fol. 12.
" See account of him under Rotherham College
in A. F. Leach, Early Torks. Schools, xxvii.
IS6
SCHOOLS
bishop of York, and founder of a small Eton at
Jesus College, Rotherham, in 1480, who was
already more than 19 years old.
As only those above 1 5 n had to swear to the
statutes, it looks as if even in December 1443
the school was not filled up. The completion
of the college was marked by the famous Amica-
bilis concordia or covenant of alliance between
Wykeham's two colleges of the Virgin at
Oxford and Winchester and the two royal
colleges of the Virgin of Cambridge and Eton
for mutual assistance, signed by their respective
wardens and provosts i July 1444.
The first head master mentioned at Eton is
William Westbury, in the Bursars' or Audit Roll of
1444-5, which is the earliest preserved. Now
William Westbury was an old pupil of Wayne-
flete's. He was in all probability son of William
Westbury, serjeant-at-law, who appears in the
Winchester Bursars' Roll for 1423-488 receiving
half a mark as leader of several counsel in an action
about some Andover property of that college,
and was a judge of the King's Bench in 1426.
He came from Westbury, Wiltshire, where he
endowed a chantry. The son is described as of
Alresford, when admitted a ' poor and needy '
scholar of Winchester in 1428-9. He went on
to New College in 1433. The New College
records report him as leaving his fellowship **
'in the month of May 1442, transferring him-
self to the King's service.' It can hardly be
doubted that the royal service to which he was
transferred was that of head master, and, it is
contended, first head master of the royal col-
lege. The Audit Roll of 1444-5 shows indeed,
by its beginning with 'arrears ' or surplus received
from the bursars of the preceding year, that it was
not the first, though the small amount of the sur-
plus, £3 3*. id., compared with one of j£54 odd
carried over to the next year, and other entries,
make it probable that it was only the second
roll ; and that nothing like the full income had
been received in 1443—4.
The Dictionary of National Biography avoids
all difficulties as to the opening of Eton School
and the first head master by the assertion that
Wayneflete was ' in the first charter of Eton, 1 1
October 1440, nominated a fellow and removed
to Eton in 1442. A class-room was then open,
but the pupils were lodged in private houses.'
The first two statements are, as we have seen,
wrong. Wayneflete was not named in the
charter of 1440, and he left Winchester in
1441. The last two statements may be true,
but no authority for them now exists, nor is
any cited.
0 When the Winchester boyi were iworn to their
statutes in 1400, 36 out of 70 took the oath.
" The protocol* of admission of fellows show that
his successor was admitted ' in loco Willelmi West-
bury transferentis se ad obsequium," to which another
hand has added ' regis."
The statutes given to the two royal colleges in
1 443 made them now like the two Wykehamical
colleges. As the statutes, in words copied from
those of Winchester, say : ' Though situate in
different places, they come from one stem, and
originally issue from one spring ; they do not
differ in substance, and so naturally do not
produce different effects.' The statutes of Eton
are in fact a mere transcript of those of Win-
chester, mutatis mutandis. Even the mutanda
are limited to the narrowest possible changes,
such as the substitution of Eton for Winchester,
Cambridge for Oxford, and Henry VI for
William of Wykeham, the very title of the
Patron Saint, Our Lady of Eton, being closely
adapted from Our Lady of Winchester. The
adaptation of the statutes is much closer even
than that made by Chicheley for his own
college of All Souls, though that is close enough,
or by Wayneflete himself for Magdalen College.
The whole 45 statutes of Winchester, with
the preamble, called in the Eton copy the
Mem et Intentio fundatoris, and the solemn ' end
and conclusion of all the statutes,' appear
verbatim et literatim, for the most part, in the
Eton statutes. These number 62, however,
because the preamble and conclusion are num-
bered as statutes, and nine statutes were added
for the almsmen, not included at Winchester,
and destined quickly to disappear from Eton.
Mr. Mullinger's remark in his History of Cam-
bridge University, ' The Latinity ... is more
correct, and copious to a fault, and there is also
to be noted an increased power of expression,' is
not easy to understand. The expressions are
identical, even to the anachronistic repetition in
the King's College statutes of the Black Death
and its successors in 1361 and 1368 as having
caused a dearth of properly educated clerics, for
which Chicheley in the statutes for All Souls
substituted the more up-to-date cause of the wars
between England and France. The corporate
title bestowed on the college was markedly
different. Instead of being ' the Warden and
Scholars Clerks ' (scolares cleric!), it was the Pro-
vost and College (Prepositus et Collegium). The title
of provost was substituted for warden, undoubt-
edly by way of distinction from Winchester.
That title, and not rector or master, was no
doubt chosen because the head of the college of
St. Elizabeth, which stood next door to the
college at Winchester and is now part of it, was
called provost, as was also the head of King's
Hall (Oriel) at Oxford, a post held by John
Carpenter, who took some part in the foundation,
and was consecrated Bishop of Worcester in
Eton Chapel, and the head of Queen's College,
founded next after Oriel. The corporate body
was almost the same as at Winchester, being
a provost and 70 scholars with 10 fellow* and 16
choristers. But there were ten instead of only
three hired chaplains, who from being ctnductitii tt
'57
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
remotivi, hired and removable, instead of holding
freehold offices, were and are called conducts,
10 chapel clerks instead of three, while 13
poor youths, scholars, and 13 almsmen had
no precursor at Winchester. The increase of
chaplains and clerks was to augment the splen-
dour of the services. Of the 10 clerks four
were to be honest men, of good conduct, skilled in
reading, psalming and singing, skilled also in part-
singing('etiam cantu organico24 peritiam habentes')
with voices of equal power (' in vocibus similiter
bene dispositi '), one of whom at least was to know
how to improvise on the organ (jubilare in
organis), and he alone of all the clerks of the
college, if another could not be had, was allowed
to be a married man. The organist in Italy
is to this day often a layman, though a cleric
is preferred. There was also to be a parish
clerk who was able to teach the grammar
scholars, and a vestry clerk, each of whom were
to receive five marks extra. The tale of ten
was made up of four gentlemen clerks (clerici
generoii) who were to sit at the first dinner at a
gentlemen's table (' in primis refectionibus ad
aliquam mensam generosorum ') with the chap-
lains, and were to be taught part-singing, their
instructor having £6 and three others to have
six marks. There were also added 13 poor
youths, between 15 and 20 years old at the
time of their admission, who were to be taken
from the outside scholars (i.e. oppidans) of the
college, who were to act as chamber-servants to
the provost, fellows, and head master, and to ring
the bells, but were also by the instruction of
their masters and attendance in the grammar
school to render themselves fit in learning to
take holy orders, ' for which reason above all we
have thought good that they should be admitted
to our college royal.'
The school, the grammar school as it was
called, though the main object of the college,
only occupies six whole statutes and small por-
tions of eight others, out of the total of sixty-two
statutes. The bulk of these statutes was occu-
pied with the duties of the warden, bursars,
fellows, chaplains, and others, the conduct of the
church services and the obits for the soul of the
founder.
The provisions for the school differed little
from those at Winchester. As there the master
teacher (Magister Informator) was the second
person in the college, sitting at the upper table
in hall above the fellows (except the vice-provost,
14 Not ' singing to the organ.' The organ was not
used with the singing, but between the singing parts,
till after the Reformation ; it was played with the foot,
and the great object was ' to make a joyful noise
before the Lord ' (Jubilare in organis). On the other
hand, the organum, still called in Spain canto de organo,
an organ being always in the plural organa, is part-
singing unaccompanied ; cf. f.C.H. Lines, ii. C. F.
Abdy Williams in Musical Times, Feb. 1 907.
who changed every year), and sitting according
to his academical degree in the church ; whence
perhaps the custom of becoming D.D. or D.C.L.,
the latter more common in old days. His
stipend was 24 marks or £16 a year, as against
£10 for the fellows and £30 for the provost.
His commons (stat. 1 5) were at the same rate
as the fellows', viz., iQd. a week or ^4 6s. 8d.
a year ; there being also allowance to the whole
table of is. id. on twenty-five days for augmenta-
tion. His livery of cloth, which was to be
black or dark grey, was 6 yds. at 35. $d. a yd.,
or £i. He might have one of the youths
(juvenes) as servant (stat. 10), who was to be
found commons and livery by the college, and
to receive such wages as the master agreed on
with him. The qualifications of the master were
simply to be 'sufficiently learned in grammar,
having experience of teaching,' with an addition
not found in the Winchester statutes, a testi-
mony to the growth of the University, and the
increased supply of M.A.'s, that he shall be 'a
master in arts, if such can be conveniently
gotten, by no means married, or beneficed in any
college, chapel or church with cure of souls
within 7 miles of our college of Eton.' The
usher (kostiarius), who, as at Winchester, was
only to be 'sufficiently learned in grammar,'
without previous experience in teaching, was to
have the additional qualification of being un-
married, not in holy orders, ' a bachelor of arts if
such can be conveniently had.' Master and
usher were ' to assiduously instruct and teach the
scholars of the said college in grammar, and at-
tentively supervise their life and conduct ;
punishing the idlers and offenders without par-
tiality, with this caution that in chastisement
they no way exceed moderation ' — a caution
which favourably distinguished Wykeham from
many previous and later school legislators, who
were more anxious to get the boys well flogged
than careful to prevent their being too much
flogged. As at Winchester, both master and
usher were strictly forbidden ' to presume to
exact, ask or claim in any way anything from
any of the scholars or their parents or friends for
their labour about the said scholars bestowed or
to be bestowed by reason or occasion of such
instruction." In other words, the school was a
free grammar school.
The contemplated pay ot the masters was
decidedly on a higher scale than that laid down
at Winchester. The provost had ^30 instead
of j£2o, the master 24 marks (j£i6) as against
£10, and the usher 10 marks as against 5 marks
(£6 13*. 4-d. instead of £3 6s. 8d.). A similar
rise took place in the salary fixed for St. An-
thony's School, London, for which statutes were
made by Wayneflete and Say in 1447. However,
the loss of endowment under Edward IV pre-
vented these figures being realized, and the salary
of the head master of Eton was in practice only
158
SCHOOLS
the same as at Winchester, £10. The allow-
ances for commons were raised, as compared with
Winchester, from is. in ordinary times and is. 6d.
in time of scarcity, to is. 6d. in ordinary times
and 21. in times of scarcity. For some reason,
however, the livery of cloth for gowns was
reduced in amount, the master having 6 yards
instead of 8, and the usher 5 yards, the same as
at Winchester. They were obliged, however,
only to keep their gowns for one year instead of
five years, as at Winchester. A similar advance
was noticeable in the arrangement as to cham-
bers. While at Winchester the master and
usher, and, if necessary, another priest, were to
share a chamber, and the fellows were to sleep
three in a room ; at Eton each fellow and the
head master were to have separate rooms, and
the hostiaritu and chaplains were to be two in a
room.
Besides the master and usher provision was
made for an assistant master, it being provided
that the chapel clerk, who acted as parish clerk,
should also be able to teach the grammarians.
His pay was 5 marks (£3 6s. 8^.), and his
commons i$d. a week.
The provisions as to the scholars were in
identical terms with those at Winchester ; that
is, they were to be 70 in number, poor and needy
(pauperes tt indigentes], between eight and twelve
years old at the time of election, completely
instructed in reading, plainsong, and grammar ;
with a proviso that anyone under seventeen
might be elected if he showed promise of being
sufficiently learned in grammar by the time he
was eighteen. They were to be born in Eng-
land, with preference for those coming from
places and counties in which the college had
property. But there were two additions not
present in the Winchester statutes, viz. that
' regard was to be had to the choristers ' of Eton
and King's, ' whom on account of their labours
and services rendered in the said royal colleges it
is right should according to their merits be pre-
ferred to those who are on a par with them in
the conditions and qualities above-mentioned,' but
* no villein (nativus) or illegitimate ' was to be
admitted.
The provisions as to examination for college
at Winchester had specially included ' other boys
and the choristers of the chapel there' to be
examined, and as a matter of fact, till the reign
of Henry VIII at least, nearly all the choristers
did get into college. In this respect, therefore,
the definite preference given for choristers was
only a legalization and extension of existing
practice. Whether the exclusion of those who
were unfree was also in accordance with practice at
Winchester, and not a retrograde provision, is a
moot point. When Wykeham first started his
school, about 1370, and when he definitely en-
dowed it in 1382, it is probable that no one
would have thought the son of a slave or a bonds-
man eligible for a scholarship at Winchester any
more than he ordinarily was for the priesthood,
though it is to be observed that in 1 3 1 2 a fellow
of Merton, Master Walter of Merton in Oxford,
received manumission from the Cathedral Priory
of Durham.1* But by the rejection of a Bill sent
up by the Commons in 1392, excluding villeins'
sons from schools, Richard II, or his advisers,
threw the school doors open to them. As a
sequel to the Peasants' Revolt, by the time of
Henry VI the number of bondsmen was much
reduced, so that exclusion of the unfree, while
at all events not a liberal measure, was not so
illiberal as it would have been in the 141(1 cen-
tury. One danger in the selection of its scholars
Eton escaped by having a royal founder ; the
absolute right of admission and the special privi-
leges given to kin of the founder, which in the
1 7th century nearly ruined Winchester, were
absent from the Eton statutes.
The electing body was the same, mutatis
mutandis, as at Winchester; the provost of
King's, with two fellows called posers (i.e.
opposers or apposers), came to Eton between
the translation of Thomas Becket (7 July) and
the Assumption of the Virgin (15 August), and
with the provost and vice-provost and head
master of Eton held a scrutiny to detect anything
amiss in the conduct of the college, and then
examined and elected the Eton boys to King's,
and the choristers and others for admission to
Eton, putting their names on a roll, those named
being admitted in order as vacancies occurred.
The scholars of Eton were to dwell in the
ground-floor chambers of the inner quadrangle
with three prefects or prepostors in each cham-
ber. It is a moot point with the Eton historians
whether they ever did so, or whether Long
Chamber, in which the whole 70 slept in one
barrack-like room, was original or only an inno-
vation, dating from the time when the west side
of the inner quadrangle and Lupton's Tower was
devoted to the provost by Provost Lupton at the
end of the reign of Henry VII. It seems,
however, wholly incredible that the statutes,
which were altered from those of Winchester in
every minute point in which circumstances were
altered, would have been retained unaltered on so
important a point of school life as the chambers,
if so great an alteration had been made as to sub-
stitute one large chamber for six smaller ones.
The words in the Winchester statutes as to
chambers, directing the ' great house ' below Hall
to be used as a school — it is now Seventh Cham-
ber— and the prohibition of wrestling, dancing,
jumping, singing, and shouting in Hall, because it
was over school, are omitted from the Eton
statutes, because Hall at Eton was a separate
* Rtg. Palat. Duntlm. (Rolls Ser.), 97. At late as
the day* of Elizabeth a manumission ii found of a
fellow of Exeter College and his family.
'59
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
building outside the quadrangle, while the pro-
vision as to the master and usher having the
north-west corner for their chamber was also
omitted because they had separate chambers.
The fact that the provisions as to the boys'
chambers remained the same as at Winchester is
conclusive proof that at first the masters and the
boys were not in the outer but in the inner
quadrangle, and lived not in one but in seven
several chambers, the 16 choristers occupying
one, and the 70 scholars the other six.
It should be observed that the cost of the com-
mons of the scholars was raised from 8d. a week
at Winchester to is. T>d. a week. As for livery,
while at Winchester white, black, russet, and
grey gowns were expressly prohibited, because
of the black, white, russet, and grey monks,
canons, and friars who swarmed there, at Eton
the gowns were ordered to be black or dark
grey, there being no regulars near for whom the
scholars could be mistaken. At first the cloth
for the gowns was bought at Winchester.
Tunics worn under the gown are mentioned.
There is no direct evidence what the dress
was like. A portrait in brass of John Stonor, of
29 August 151 5,26 at Wraysbury on the
Thames, is now commonly cited as that of a
scholar of Eton and as showing what the dress
was then. But it is quite certain that the brass
in question does not show the dress of an Eton
scholar, and it is almost certain that the subject
was not an Etonian at all. The Rev. Herbert
Haines, second master of Gloucester Cathedral
Grammar School, in his Monumental Brasses,
published in 1 86 1,27 is responsible for saying,
without giving any reason, ' It probably exhibits
the dress of an Eton scholar.' Subsequent
writers on brasses, including the latest,28 have
converted the ' probably ' into a positive assertion
that it is that of an Eton scholar. There is,
however, no evidence to show that John or any
other Stonor ever was an Eton scholar. His
name is not in any Eton list yet known, pub-
lished or otherwise. Even if he was, there is no
reason except the somewhat small dimensions of
the brass for supposing that the brass is that of a
boy. It is now well established from the cele-
brated brasses at Salisbury and Winchester, once
supposed to be those of boy-bishops, that the
small size of a figure is no indication of the
small size of the subject. Stonor's figure is
certainly not that of a person in statu pupillari.
It is clad in a long gown with a white fur border
down the middle and at the bottom. By
sumptuary laws, the latest of which, at Stonor's
* The inscription is : ' Here lyeth John Stonor, the
sone of Walter Stoner, squyer, that departed this
world ye xxix day of August in yere of our lord
mdcxv.'
" p. Ixxxvi.
18 Herbert Drewitt, A Manual of Costume as Illus-
trated by Monumental Brasses (1906), 14.2.
date, was I Henry VIII, cap. 14 (1509-10), no
schoolboy, certainly no pauper et indigent scolaris,
would have been allowed to wear fur, which was
restricted to the upper ranks of laymen and the
upper orders of clerics and academics. More-
over the figure portrayed has on the head a hood
close-fitting to the face, with liripips or streamers
behind, and above it a round cap, also of fur or
bound with fur, which are almost certainly the
hood and cap (pileuni) of a doctor of laws.
Schoolboys went bareheaded, as was still the
custom at Winchester 30 years ago in the
college precinct, and at Christ's Hospital still.
John Stonor's brass gives therefore no indication
of the dress of a scholar of Eton.
In the absence of any other evidence we may
therefore assume that the scholars of Eton were
dressed like the scholars of Winchester, in a long
gown with a low collar 29 buttoned at the neck,
and closed in front and hanging down to the
heels, which may be seen in the brass in Head-
bourne Worthy, Hants, of 'John Kent once
scholar of the New college of Wynchestre and
son of Simon Kent of Reading,' who died in
1434. The present gown at Winchester only
differs from this in that the sleeve now does not
go down to the wrist, but is cut short up at the
elbow and puffed, and the gown is now worn
open, except by a junior when speaking to a
master, but when closed it is still held by only
one button at the neck. At Eton the sign of
superannuation used to be the cutting of the top
button, letting the two sides of the gown fall
open apart from each other. But the modern
Eton gown is, as at Oxford, a garment not worn
always, but only in school and chapel, and then
donned over ordinary modern dress. It is
strange to find that, in spite of the statutes, the
colour of the gowns was in 1446-7 30 blue ; in
1447-8 'mustre devillers,' which is striped blue
and yellow ; in 1458 partly plain, partly rayed
(stragulatam). In 1567-8 russet was bought in
London ' for schollars lyvyrye.'
Besides scholars there were from the first at
Eton, as at Winchester, commoners in college
(commensales in collegia). By an almost casual
entry at the end of a statute forbidding strangers
to be lodged in college, except (and that for two
days at a time only) parents or friends of
scholars, Wykeham said : ' We allow however
that sons of noble and powerful persons, special
friends of the college, may, to the number of ten,
be instructed in grammar and educated in the
19 In A. F. Leach, Hist, of Winchester Coll. this was
misdescribed, from the drawing given of it in Ann. of
Winchester Coll. as a high collar, the line of the chin
being mistaken for part of the collar. The illustra-
tion in the article by him on ' Schools ' in V.C.H.
Hants, ii, 274, shows clearly the collar the same
as in the present Winchester gowns.
30 Eton Aud. R. 25 & 26 Hen. VI. This is the
second extant roll.
160
SCHOOLS
college without burden to the college ; so that it
be without prejudice, damage, or scandal to the
members of the college.' The same words were
used at Eton, but the number was doubled,
twenty extranet commensales or tabling strangers
being admissible. ' Noble ' of course had not the
limited sense now given to it, but included all
of gentle birth, squires and country gentlemen —
in fact anyone who bore arms.
Lastly, over and above all these the school was
open as a Free Grammar School to all coming to
it from all parts of England. In this respect
Eton was unlike Winchester and like the
ordinary grammar school. At Winchester no
provision was made for outsiders, probably be-
cause there was already an existing high school
or city grammar school in the town, of imme-
morial antiquity, to which outsiders could go,
and for trenching on the monopoly of which, by
admitting scholars and gentlemen-commoners at
all, Wykeham thought it necessary to get a papal
bull. In point of fact, however, outsiders were
admitted. For a rescript by Bishop Beaufort,
Wykeham's successor in the see of Winchester,
IO April 1412, states the 'the master is con-
tinually instructing and educating in grammar
80 or 100 outsiders in our college, contrary to
the pious intention of the founder,' and ' because
one master is not enough to teach so large a
number,' he forbade the warden ' to admit any
outsider beyond the number limited by the
statutes to be taught grammar in the college, or
allow them to be admitted without your (the
warden's) special licence.' This licence must,
however, have been freely given. Extant
accounts of the provost of St. Elizabeth's College,
which stood where the warden's garden now is,
show the admission in 1400 of commoners, and
the next extant accounts in 1455 and 1460-4
show commoners of whom some are specifically
stated to be attending school in ' New College,'
as Winchester, like its sister college at Oxford,
was then called. Wayneflete no doubt had
himself taught these commoners at Winchester.
Convinced, therefore, of the advantage of them,
he ensured their admission at Eton, not at the
mercy of the provost, but by adding to the
master's salary and making it his duty to admit
them free and giving the boys an absolute right
to come. There was, however, at Eton no St.
Elizabeth's College and no Sisters' Hospital, one
on each side of the college, to board them under
care, and no city to receive them into lodgings,
but only a village with a few houses. Yet so
important was the admission of outsiders deemed,
that, by a patent of 20 June 1444, Henry VI
forbade the providers of victuals for the king's
household to take any property of the college or
of the parishioners of Eton for the king's use, or
to billet anyone in Eton against the will of the
provost, and declared ' that all the inns (hosf>itia)y
houses, and mansions in the town and parish of
Eton shall be specially reserved for the boys and
scholars coming together there for their educa-
tion (diidplina) and others coming there for any
reason connected with the college, at the discre-
tion of the provost or his deputy, so that no one
else shall lodge there either himself or anyone
else without their leave.' So that the whole
town of Eton was placed under the rule of the
provost and reserved for the school. Moreover,
on 12 March 1444-5 a" lands and tenements
in Eton were granted to the college, and to
ensure a supply of provisions two fairs, one for
three days after the Carnival, the other for four
days after the Assumption of the Virgin
(15 August), were established. In the same
spirit it is said 31 that by patent 24 Henry VI
the grammar school of the college was given a
monopoly, and no other school was allowed in
Eton or within 10 miles of it.
The absence of any indication whatever of
the time-table or curriculum of the school in all
the voluminous statutes might be thought strange
were it not that a similar absence of detail is
characteristic of school foundations in every age.
Indeed, the latest formula of the Board of Edu-
cation for school curriculum is merely to say
that ' instruction shall be given in such subjects
proper to be taught in a Public Secondary School
as the governors in consultation with the head
master may from time to time think fit.' The
Eton curriculum was summed up in the one
word ' grammar,' taught in a way to fit the
scholars for the university. There is no specific
evidence to show what grammar included or
how it was taught at Eton for nearly a century
after the foundation. But we know** that
grammar meant Latin grammar and the Latin
classics, with composition both in Latin prose
and Latin verse, and conversation carried on in
the Latin tongue, both in and out of school.
Besides this, the Eton statutes go in one respect
into rather more detail than those of Winchester,
in that they direct (stat. 14) that ' the master,
or, in his absence, the usher, is to make a dispu-
tation in grammar, to be publicly held in the
nave of the collegiate church or the cloister of
the same, or other fit place, on the day of the
Translation of St. Thomas the Martyr, by some
advanced scholar of the royal college in the
presence of all the boys learning grammar and of
all others coming there — he to be answered in
the accustomed manner by another scholar.'
This institution of a Speech Day was no doubt
not a new thing in schools. The reference to
its being held in the cloister shows that it was
modelled at all events on Winchester practice,
" B.M. Sloane MSS. 4840, fol. 313. I am bound
to say that I have failed to find the patent in question.
" e.g. by the regulations for Grammar Schools and
Grammar Schoolmasters at Oxford in Oxford Uni-
versity Statutes.
ibi
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
where in the summer the upper classes at least
were held in cloisters, and the summer term was
and is still called Cloister Time ; while the dis-
putation in grammar prevailed at Westminster
election till half way through the igth century.
A curious ' Memorandum ' on the Eton Election
Roll for I468,33 that ' Kercy,' whose name ap-
pears in the body of the roll as Kersey, but with-
out the usual details of age and place of birth,
' is not found in the examination papers,' appears
to show that the examination was really com-
petitive, and that written papers were set in it.
The use of the word ' examinations,' not ' elec-
tion,' and the plural number seems to negative
the idea that the missing papers were merely this
boy's application for election.
But as to what subjects the examination was
in, besides Donatus or the accidence and plain
chant, we are left to guess. But there can be
little doubt that a very considerable amount of
real classics was done. The now well-known
letter of William Paston, written 23 February
1479, when an oppidan about nineteen years
old, living in a dame's house — he calls her ' my
hostess ' — under the tuition of a fellow, Thomas
Stevenson, concludes thus : ' And as for my
coming from Eton, I lack nothing but versifying,
which I trust to have with a little continuance.
Quare u quo modo non valet hora valet mora ?
Unde di[citur]
Arbore jam videas exemplum. Non die possunt
Omnia suppleri, sed tamen ilia mora.
And these two verses aforesaid be of mine own
making.'
The false quantity in making the e in ' die '
short is shocking to the modern classical scholar;
but it must be remembered that Paston was only
an oppidan, and was already spending his time
attending weddings and falling in love with a
young lady from London, to whom the bulk of
the letter is devoted. The verses, however, on
the monument of William Westbury, the first
head master, who died in 1472, would perhaps
be equally startling to the modern master : —
Nate Dei patrls," anime miserere Wilhelmi
Westburi cujns ossa sub hoc lapide
Condita sunt ; natus erat et nutritus in Alford,
Wintonie juvenis grammaticam didicit.
Oxonie studuit, et in artibus ille magister
Etone pueros grammaticam docuit.
Inde theologus est hie functus Prepositura,
Tolle decem menses, lustra per integra sex.
83 ' Memorandum, quod non inventus in papiris
examinacionum Kercy.'
31 ' Why, when the hour does not avail, does delay
avail f ' This is the theme set by the master. The
words ' on which it is said ' usher in the boy's
answer : ' You may see an example in a tree. Every-
thing cannot be supplied in a day, but it is by
waiting.'
" ' Son of God the Father, have mercy on the soul
of William Westbury, whose bones are buried under
this stone. He was born and bred at Alresford, at
The lengthening of the syllables marked was
not done in the golden age of Latin elegiacs,
though it is probable that in the third line erat
had been misread for fait. But hexameters and
pentameters were a mere exotic in Latin. The
authors on whom Westbury was brought up were
probably largely the authors of the bronze age, or
of even baser metal, the Christian poets of the
4th and 5th centuries, Sedulius and Juvencus and
Prudentius, whom Colet even half a century I
later regarded as models of pure Latinity ; and
they exercised equal or even greater licence,
even making the o of the ablative short, as if it
was the modern Italian o. The practice in this
respect of some ten centuries was probably
nearer the real pronunciation than the narrower
rules which prevailed in the single century of
the golden age of Roman literature.
We may now revert to a regular chrono-
logical order of history. The evidence already
given points to the school beginning, not in
October 1442, when Wayneflete left Winches-
ter, but at Midsummer 1443, when he was
already provost. Even then it began with a
very scanty number, which was increased at the
election of 1444 ; but the full complement was not
made up, as the Audit Roll of 1444—5 shows,
till the election of 1445. That roll records the
purchase of 370^ yds. of linen 'for sheets,
shirts and other necessaries for scholars and
choristers,' out of which thirty pairs of sheets were
made ; while fifteen canvases were bought and a
cart-load of straw to fill them, and 82 yds. of
woollen cloth for blankets (lodicibus), showing that
the scholars did not, as has been alleged, lie in
straw, but on straw mattresses with all the para-
phernalia of modern beds. In that year, too,
sixty-three gowns and hoods were made by two
tailors, the cloth for which was bought at
Winchester from Thomas Filde, draper, as it
was every year till 1476, after which it was
bought at St. Bartholomew's Fair, London. The
record of the weekly commons shows a sudden in-
crease from 46 in the third week, and 58 'scholars,
choristers, and servants,' the latter meaning the
12 pueri servientes, in the twelfth week, to 84 in
the thirteenth week. The cause of this accession
of numbers is to be found in the first regular elec-
tion of scholars on 26 September I444.36 Then
seven scholars from Eton were elected to King's,
headed by the ex- Winchester scholar, Richard
Roche of Tawnton (Taunton in Somerset), who
was only fifteen, while three others were nineteen,
one eighteen, and Richard Fauley, the ex-Win-
Winchester as a youth he learnt grammar, he studied
at Oxford, and as a master in arts taught boys gram-
mar at Eton. Then, becoming a theologian (i.e.
D.D.), he discharged the office of provost here for 6
whole lustra (30 years), less ten months.'
56 This and the following rolls, the existence of
which was previously unknown, were discovered by the
writer in searching for the Audit Rolls.
162
SCHOOLS
Chester commoner, sixteen years old. Two
came from Somerset, two from Dorset, one each
from Hanpshire, Berkshire, and Warwickshire.
No fewer than 25 were elected to Eton. They
were headed by Richard Denman from the
county of Durham, who had already attained
the extreme age allowed, of seventeen years,
while a Yorkshire boy, John Freeman, was six-
teen. On the other hand, one from Eton itself
and one from London were only ten years old.
The rest ranged from twelve to fifteen years of
age. It would almost appear that the widest
possible range was purposely taken, no county
contributing more than two boys, except York-
shire, which sent five; but of these one came from
York and one from each of the three Ridings
other than the West Riding, which sent two.
Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, and Hertford-
shire each contributed two scholars ; while Lon-
don, Cambridgeshire, Devonshire, Gloucester-
shire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Middlesex,
Northamptonshire, Surrey, Somerset, and West-
morland each contributed a single scion. The
names of Yarborough (Yarbrow) from Lincoln-
shire, Catesby from Northamptonshire, Bower
from Yorkshire, Salkeld from Westmorland, and
Dorman from Leicestershire, all county families —
and no doubt to those having local knowledge
many of the other names — show that the words
pauperes indigentes by no means meant, as has
sometimes been asserted, the ' poor and needy '
in the sense in which it is used nowadays, in the
Poor Law sense, but included the younger sons
of the upper middle classes, ' those who without
help could not keep their sons at the universi-
ties.' The next election roll forthcoming is
that for 1446, and contains 35 names of those
' nominated to the college royal.' If they were
all admitted, this year, when the school was built
and the college practically finished, marks the
final filling of the college to its full number.
The age in this roll is much lower than that of
previous elections, the eighteenth on the list
being only eight, while the fourth and fifth were
ten years old, and none of the first 18 were over
fourteen years of age. No fewer than 6 of them
were Londoners ; the rest came from Bedford-
shire, Berkshire, Gloucestershire, Hampshire,
Kent, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, Oxford-
shire. In the next extant roll, that for 1453, a
distinction is drawn between those ' elected and
admitted ' (aisumptorum) on 3 August, and those
' elected, nominated, and to be admitted ' (assum-
endorum). The former list consisted of 15
names ; the latter contained no fewer than 65,
of whom not a tenth could have been actually
admitted. The name of Nicholas Wallop of
Farleigh, aged eleven, of the ancient Hampshire
family now represented by the Earl of Portsmouth,
shows what the status of the poor and indigent
scholars was. Counties so distant as Cornwall
and Derbyshire sent representatives.
In 1444-5 tne college had got into working
order, with William Westbury as head master
and Thomas Chaunterie as first usher, while two
clerks, Henry Sulbyand Henry Warde, instructed
in singing. The endowment was not yet com-
pleted, the total income of £946 8;. $\d. being
made up by three gifts 'of the most gracious
Founder' of jTi 20, of £i 8 provided by the pro-
vost, and another £18 the proceeds of the con-
tributions at the Assumption of the Virgin ; but
as the staff of confessors, who with their servants
occupied thirty beds, and the entertainment of
strangers cost £29 19;. 3/f., the bulls for the feast
were a losing speculation. This year saw the
erection of the school, ' a house and two chambers
at the end of the same (the old church), inside
the precinct of the college, to teach the gram-
mar scholars in,"7 at a cost of £71 16*. 9^., or
some £2,150 of our money. With its two class-
rooms it was 70 ft. long by 24 ft. broad, or about
5 ft. narrower, but 25 ft. longer, than the magna
domus which formed the school at Winchester.
The total area was 1,680 square ft. as against
1,350. At 12 square ft. each this gives room
for 140 boys, which would leave room for only
about 2O oppidans. But with the closer packing
of those days, allowing I o square ft. each, some
50 oppidans, making 190 in all, might have been
admitted. However tight the packing, it could
not in any case have been contemplated that
oppidans should be in the majority, as against
the 119 members of the college. The college
precinct was completed by ' making gates in the
paling round ' it, i.e. the outer gate, at a cost
of £8 1 8*. -id. Next year the almshouse was
built in the outer quadrangle, probably where
Uoper School now is ; it was finished in the
following year. The Old Hall mentioned in
the accounts was also in 1445—6 in course of
being superseded by the present hall, the chief
mason going to consult the Marquis of Suffolk
on its 'making' in November 1445—6. It
was in use before Midsummer 1449, though
it was not till 1450 that 'storied glass' (vitri
bistorialis) was placed in its windows. In its
dimensions, 82 ft. by 32 ft., it was distinctly
intended to surpass that of Winchester, which
was only some 63 ft. by 30 ft., though, oddly
enough, it was smaller than that of New College,
87 ft. by 35 ft.
In 1446-7 the total number of 'scholars
choristers and servitors ' was raised from 86 to
1 06, the total possible being 109, viz. 70
scholars, 1 6 choristers, and 13 servitors. The
usher had changed, William Child or Chylde, a
17 Willis and Clark, op. cit. i, 403. ' In divcrsis custi-
bus pro factura et nova construccionc cuiusdam domus
et duarum camerarum ad finem eiusdem infra pro-
cinctura dicti collcgii pro scolaribus gramatice intus
informandis.' This Mr. Clark translates ' to teach
the scholars grammar in,' but the proper translation is
as given in the text.
163
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Winchester scholar in 1437 an^ fellow of New
College, having succeeded Chaunterie at or
before Michaelmas 1446. The provost's pay
was now increased to ^75 a year by the addition
of £25 a year instead of the rectory of Eton.
The total income was ,£1,536, but as the
roll is imperfect we do not know how much
came from endowment or whether any of it
came from gifts by the king. It is to be noted
that on Maundy Thursday the ' Founder's
alms ' cost no less than £12 5*. 8d., some ^370
in our money ; among the items being 7 casks of
red herrings and 400 white herrings, a dozen
(? casks) of ale, while a penny each was given to
no less than 1,000 poor, and 13, probably the
almsmen, had 4^. apiece. No less than 5,600
wafers (panibus) were consumed in the church
during the year, a number which in 1447—8 in-
creased to 8,450. 8o£ ells of Flanders and 43
ells of Brabant, with 38 ells of unnamed linen,
were bought for table-cloths, and 28 ells of
diaper for napkins for the hall, so that the 15th-
century frequenters of halls lived in no less
gentlemanly a way than their successors. An
interesting item is ' 9 green boughs of " cero " for
the adornment of the hall on St. John Baptist's
(Midsummer) day ' ; on which day later rolls
show that it was customary to set up a great
candle in hall painted green and- red, ' turmyn-
tyne' and 'vermelon' being bought in 1449 for
the feast, and in later years ' verdegris ' and ' ver-
milion,' while ' talwode ' was provided for a
' bonefyre ' on the eve of the day, as also on the
eves of St. Peter and St. Paul on 29 June and the
Translation of St. Thomas the Martyr (Becket)
on 7 July. For the boy bishop is. 6d. was ex-
pended on making his rochet (in factura unius
rochet ordinate pro episcopo Nicolaiensi). That re-
paired in 1507—8 at a cost of lid. (pro repara-
tlone le rochet pro episcopo puerorum) was a later gift
of Canon Denton, an old Etonian. The boy-
bishop is called by the Elizabethan master,
Malim, episcopus Nibilensis, which Sir Henry
Maxwell • Lyte has translated ' a bishop of
nothingness ' instead of ' a bishop Nicholas,' i.e.
Santa Claus. The boy-bishop ceremonial, which
appears to be a Christian adaptation of a custom
at the Roman Saturnalia of the slave sitting in
the place of the master and the master doing the
duty of the servant, was expressly authorized at
Eton by statute, with a curious and not easily
explicable variation from the similar Winchester
statute. Wykeham, after directing the fellows
and chaplains to do duty on certain saints' days,
said, ' We allow, however, that on the feast of
Innocents the boys may say and celebrate vespers,
matins, and other divine offices read or chanted
after the use and custom of the church of
.Sarum.' The age seems to have grown more
scrupulous in the interval ; for Henry VI said,
•*on which day (St. Nicholas, 6 December), and
jnot by any means on the teast of the Holy
Innocents, we allow divine service, except the
sacred portions of the mass, to be performed and
said by a boy-bishop of the scholars, to be elected
among them yearly for the purpose.' It is easy
to see the objection of the pious king to the
mummery of the boy-bishop performing even the
most sacred portions of the mass, but it is not
easy to see why the performance was transferred
to St. Nicholas's Day. Perhaps it was not horror
at the indignity offered to the Holy Innocents,
but for the greater dignity of his own birthday and
patron saint that the change was made. It will
be seen that Eton being in the diocese of
Lincoln, whose chief saint was the boy Hugh,
one of the numerous alleged blood-offerings of
the Jews, the election was held on his day, 1 7
November, and the celebration on St. Nicholas's
Day. Even in the reign of Elizabeth the day was
kept with cakes and wine.
It is strange that there is no mention in the
accounts of 1446-7 of the great event of the year,
the passing of Provost Wayneflete to the throne of
Winchester, though they do record a payment to
the ex-usher, Mr. Thomas Chauntrie, and another,
' for their labours about the induction of the new
Provost.' Cardinal Beaufort, Bishop of Win-
chester, died 1 1 April 1447, and Henry VI having
written the same day to the conventual chapter
of Winchester to elect William Wayneflete as
his successor, he was duly elected on 13 April.
By 6 May he was with the king at Winchester.
In July he was consecrated in Eton Church,
when his old college of Winchester gave him a
horse at a cost of £6 13*. 4<£, and the warden,
sub-warden, and others rode over to Eton to pre-
sent it, and gave ' the boys of the College royal of
Eton 135. 4</.,' or about i\d. each. Even if
multiplied by thirty times to get an approximate
equivalent of the value, it is to be feared Eton
boys would not be grateful for such a tip to-
day.
The king seems now to have become excited
about Winchester to a degree bordering on the
insanity which afterwards overtook him. He
seems to have thought there was some mystic
quality in its very soil which produced its
eminent scholars ; as Winchester College records
a ' tip ' of 3*. ifd. to ' John Hayne, valet of the
king's chamber, sent by the king to learn the
character of the soil of the foundation of the
college,' 38 while what must have been a huge slice
38 Winchester Coll. Bursars' Roll, 26 & 27 Hen. VI.
' Joh. Hayne, valecto camere Domini Regis misso ad
collegium per Dominum Regem pro noticia terre
fundamenti collegii, cum 1 6d. solutis 5 laborantibus et
fodientibus pro terra eiusdem fundament! mittenda
Domino Regi, 4^. 8</.' This expenditure, as well as
that on 2 kids, 2 pheasants, 1 2 partridges (parteiychis),
17 chickens, and 3 trouts (truttis) given the king,
when he came in person, was amply repaid by the
king's gift of a gold chalice and ' fiols,' £10 in gold,
and 4J. \d. for a pittance.
164
SCHOOLS
of earth, as 5 labourers were paid n. ±d. or a
day's wages each, for digging it up, was sent to
him. He came in person to Winchester on
29 January 1447-8, when there was a great
gathering of those interested in Eton, the two
provosts and divers fellows of the two colleges
meeting Bekynton, Say, Uvedale, the high sheriff,
and other Wykehamists. He spent a month,
later in the same year when Parliament was held
there, paying frequent visits to the college, and
gave them a tabernacle of gold for the high altar
and 401. for the scholars and £5 for the fellows
and other things. The result was nearly fatal
to Eton, for he seems to have now conceived
the idea of rivalling and surpassing Wykeham
not merely as school and college founder, but
also as cathedral builder.
Up to this time, as is shown by the so-called
'will' of Henry VI, which was not a testament
taking effect on death, but a declaration of uses
or trusts of certain lands and revenues, chiefly
derived from the Duchy of Lancaster, which he
had vested in feoffees to carry out the works of
his two colleges, he was merely desirous of out-
bidding William of Wykeham's colleges. 'I ...
have doo my will and myne entent to be written
in maner that foloweth ... I will pray and
charge my feffees M that unto the tyme that the
saide edificacions and other werkes ... be fully
perfourmed and accomplished in more notable
wise than any of my said roiaume of England,
they see that my same colleges . . . have . . .
yerely £2,000 that is to say, Eton £1,000 and
. . . Cambridge £1,000 . . . unto the ende of
the terme of xx yeres.' The will and intent then
sets out the dimensions. The choir (quere) of
the church of Eton was to be 103 ft. long and
32 ft. broad and 80 ft. high, and the body or nave
1 04 ft. long and 32 ft. broad, with an aisle on
each side 1 5 ft. broad. ' And so the said
quere is lenger then the quere of Wynchestre
college at Oxenford by 3 feet, brodder by 2 fete
and the walls heyer by 20 fete, the pennacles
lenger 10 fete.' He had ensured this by sending
in I44240 Bekynton to New College with a
' squire of the lord king to measure the hall and
the church.' In like manner the following year
he had sent the Dean of St. Paul's to New Col-
lege ' to see and hear divine service celebrated
there and report on it to the lord king ' ; and the
New College choir was sent to Oseney Abbey,
where the king stayed, to do service before him
there. He was determined to eclipse it in that
respect also.
To make a school chapel larger than the largest
college chapel at Oxford then satisfied the king's
" This spelling admirably preserves the proper
pronunciation of the word ' feoffees," not ' fee-of-fces '
in three syllables.
"New Coll. Bursars' Roll, 11 & 2* Hen. VI.
' Pro j jentaculo dato armigero Domini Regis veniendo
ad mensurandum aulam et ecclesiam, 23*.'
ambition. But his visit to Winchester later in
the year seems to have developed megalomania.
Henry now got from Oxford, as master of the
works, Master Roger Keys, who, as second war-
den of All Souls' College, had overseen the com-
pletion of its buildings, and kept its extant and
admirable accounts. On 26 January 1448-9
Keys was paid41 191. f)\d. for his expenses for
nine days with four horses and three servants,
' sent by the lord king to Salisbury and Win-
chester, to make certain measurements there, viz.
of the choirs and naves of the churches there.'
The result was seen in three successive plans41
for completing the Eton buildings, culminating in
' The Kynge's owne avyse, as touchyng certayne
dimensions also well of the Qwere as of the body
of the churche, with the yles, of his college royall
of oure blessed lady of Eton.' These plans in-
creased the length of the choir from 103 ft. to
1 1 8 ft., and finally to 150 ft., and the breadth
from 32 ft. to 35 ft. and finally 40 ft., whilst the
nave was enlarged from 1 04 ft. to 1 1 9 ft. and then
to 1 68 ft. long, with similar increases of breadth,
the aisles being also increased in breadth from
15 ft. to 2O ft. each. Thus the whole length of
the church was made 318 ft. instead of 207 ft.,
and the breadth 80 ft. ' And so the said quere
schall be lenger than the quere of the Newe Col-
lege at Oxford bi 47 fete, brodder bi 8 fete and
the walles heyer by 20 fete And also heyer than
the walles of seynt Stephen's Chapel at West-
minstre.' In fact the design of a school chapel
was now enlarged into that of a first-class cathe-
dral.
It is interesting to observe that there was a
definite plan drawn out, and the actual architect
was apparently found in London, as Roger Keys
spent three weeks there negotiating for a new
quarry at Hudleston in Yorkshire and ' to show
the king the drawing made for the finishing of
the building.' 4»
To carry out this stupendous design, the whole
of the just completed, or almost completed, chapel,
for the roof and stalls had both been finished,
even to the polishing of the latter with ' hownd
fissch (? dog-fish) skyn,' had to be destroyed, and
special directions were required to ensure that the
very foundations themselves should not be re-
moved, but only added to for the greater breadth
contemplated. From the year 1448 to 1450 no
less than £3,336 was spent on the works, or
about £100,000, at a moderate computation, in
our money. The Marquis of Suffolk, Wayne-
flete, and the Bishop of Salisbury contributed
about £700 (or £21,000) of this sum. But it
was evidently more than the royal coffers could
stand. In 1450 the impeachment of Suffolk was
" Keys' accounts in Eton library.
0 Willis and Clark, op. cit. i, 365 ; Maxwell Lyte,
op. cit.
0 ' Ad ostendendnm Domino Regi portraturam
factam super condusione cditiui.'
165
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
followed by his death and Jack Cade's rising.
The effect was promptly seen in the works. In
1450—1, under a new master of the works, in-
stead of eighty-four masons only twenty-two
were employed; in 1452-3 the number rose to
forty, but next year, the year of the first attack
of Henry's insanity, they fell to twenty-two again.
From 1458 to 1460 no more than thirty-three
workmen in all were employed. The great
church was only built as far as the choir door,
and then remained, and remains, unfinished.
On Wayneflete's promotion, John Clerk, the
vice-provost, was made provost, being elected by
the fellows 2 August I447.43a But he died in
October of the same year, and William West-
bury, the head master, succeeded him, being
appointed by patent 8 December 1447. He was,
oddly enough, for some 300 years, the only head
master to become provost, though for the last
150 years the provostry has been regarded as a
retiring pension for the head master. Hitherto
the provost had hired a house in London to live
in during his frequent visits there in attendance
on the king or for college business, paying in
1444-5 £5 f°r the year as rent to John Goffe,
mercer, and afterwards £2 a year to the Abbot of
Chertsey. By patent, 30 October 1448, the king
conferred on the college for this purpose the
Leper Hospital of St. James, now St. James's
Palace. This hospital had an endowment of
some hundreds of acres of land in Westminster
and the suburbs ; and though part was taken in
exchange by Henry VIII when he made it a
palace, the bulk was retained by the college, and
part of it, some 140 acres, has just been sold for
j£8o,ooo for a garden city at Hampstead.
Westbury was succeeded as head master by
Richard Hopton, a fellow of Oriel, and probably
an Eton exhibitioner there. He did not take
holy orders till four years later, I February
1451, on the title of the college. After six years
he retired on an Eton fellowship, 2 March 1453.
In May 1457 ne supplicated as B.D. for a D.D.
degree at Oxford. He gave up his fellowship in
1479, but was re-elected in 1486, and died and
was buried in Eton Chapel 19 January 1496-7.
Two lines of his epitaph ** seem to claim that
he was equally eminent in music as in grammar :
' He sweated to weave his true sons in the threads
of grammar, and honey flowed in his deep notes.'
Mr. Thomas Forster, or Foster, scholar of Win-
chester 1434, and of New College 1439, suc-
ceeded Hopton as head master in May 1453. He
had William Chapman as usher. In that year the
endowment was further increased by the grant
of Cowick Priory, and the last Act of Parlia-
** B.M. Sloane MSS. 4840, fol. zz8.
44 Grammaticis solidos fills intexere gnatos Sudavit ;
gravibus mella fluere notis.' Another possible inter-
pretation, however, is that ' the honey of learning
flowed by means of heavy blows,' and this is equally
in accordance with Eton traditions.
ment obtained. New statutes seem to have been
made that year, j£i being paid for writing
the book of statutes and the correction of
another book of statutes, the ' velom ' for the
book costing 6s. 8d.t and its binding is. 8d.
The queen sent two special messengers to the
college to inform them of the birth of the
prince, destined to prove fatal to the peace of
the kingdom and the prosperity of the college.
It was perhaps in commemoration of this event
that the king gave an image of St. Nicholas to
the college. In this year there first appear in the
accounts considerable payments to the head
master for the 'exhibition of the scholars' on
certain feast days, ,£10 being spent for the pur-
pose on St. John's day, at Christmas, £12 on
19 April, £6 in September, which was for a
nutting expedition, and £11 on 8 November,
which was apparently connected with the boy-
bishop celebrations. Smaller sums were paid
for the choristers on the same days. So that it
was not all learning even in those laborious days.
By Michaelmas 1454 Clement Smythe of
Southwark, scholar of Winchester 1439, scholar
of New College 1444, and fellow 1446, had
succeeded Forster in the head-mastership. He
only took his M.A. degree after his election, on
20 April 1453, under a dispensation that Mr.
Chyld, another fellow of New College, probably
the ex-usher of Eton, might read for him, i.e.
give the two years' lectures statutably required
of every new or regent master. Smythe was
only twenty-seven years old at the time. But
at Eton, as everywhere until the end of the
1 7th century, the schoolmasters were, when
elected, almost invariably young men who had
just taken their degrees, schools not being regarded
as abiding places, but as stepping-stones to higher
preferment. Clement Smythe had for usher
Thomas Avery. Smythe held office for five years,
in turn retiring on an Eton fellowship 1 5 February
1458, and acting as bursar in 1459-60.
In 1457 there came as master John Peyntour,
the first Etonian to become head master of his
old school. Of Daventry, Northants, he
headed the roll to King's in 1448," and is pro-
bably the same person who became B.A. at
Oxford in 1455. A note in an old Eton list
describes him as ' an excellent limner ' ; but it
may be doubted whether that is not merely an
inference from his name. It is not known whether
he held office for ten years until Clement Smythe's
return ; or whether for a time, from 1463 to
Lady Day 1467, the school did not absolutely
cease during the storm which overtook Eton and
the kingdom.
The reign of the royal founder came to an
end with his defeat at the battle of Mortimer's
46 In Alumni Eton. 1447. But the years given in
that book are mostly one year too early, through mis-
calculation of the year of our Lord from the year of
the king.
166
SCHOOLS
Cross. In the first flush of victory, on 27 Feb-
ruary 1460-1, Edward, Duke of York and Earl
of March and Ulster (Ulvestre), the day before
his entry into London, as ' vray and just heire '
of England, granted letters of protection to the
' Provoste and fellowship of the collage of Eton,'
desiring everyone not to hurt, trouble or vex
them — ' neither them in their lyve loids goods
or catalls, robbe despoyle ner vexe.' On
4 August 1461 Edward IV assumed the crown.
By an Act of his first Parliament, 4 November
1461, all the grants of Henry VI, not expressly
saved, were made void, and resumed into the
king's hands. This of course did not dissolve
the college, which, being an ecclesiastical estab-
lishment, created and confirmed under the
supreme ecclesiastical power of the Pope, was
not disestablished or dissoluble by the temporal
act of king or Parliament. But the endowment
was at Edward's mercy. It says much for
Edward's policy, and indeed magnanimity, that
he not only spared the college itself, though it
was the favourite and most conspicuous work of
the man who had killed his father and robbed
him of his inheritance, but re-endowed it. By
patent 23 February 1462,** he granted as from
14 March 1461 to Provost Westbury and the
college, to pray for himself and Cicely his
mother, and the soul of Richard Duke of York,
the hospital of St. Peter, Windsor, apparently a
new property not previously enjoyed by Eton ;
two manors of Ogbourne Priory ; and the prio-
ries of Stratfield Saye, and of Cogges and Minster
Lovell, Oxfordshire ; Greeting, Suffolk, and
Evcrdon, Northants, Docking and Sporle, Nor-
folk ; Lyminster, Sussex ; part of Ogbourne
Priory ; Clatford and Hullavington, Wiltshire ;
Piddlehinton, Dorset, and Stogursey (Stoke
Courcy), Somerset ; with certain apportus due to
foreign monasteries. The bulk of the property,
however, was gran ted away. Thus on 26 February
1462,** Brimpsfield, Gloucestershire, Charlton,
Wiltshire, Povington, Dorset, Weedon Beck,
Northants, and other Eton properties were granted
to William Beaufitz for ten years, he accounting
to the Exchequer for any surplus income over
I ,OOO marks a year. Some of these, e.g. Povington
and Weedon Beck, were afterwards recovered.
On 3 August following, perhaps to attract the
support of the Church, which owed so much to
the house of Lancaster, Edward actually set up
again the alien priory of Deerhurst, granting it **
with all its possessions, which Eton had enjoyed,
to a monk of Westminster named Buckland,
' according to the original foundation and inten-
tion of Edward the Confessor.' But he was
not to pay tribute to the foreign superior, the
abbey of St. Denis, during war with France.
Five years afterwards, on the allegation that
" Pat. I Edw. IV, pt. iii, m. 24.
" Ibid. pt. iv, m. 11.
• Ibid. 2 Edw. IV, pt. i, m. J.
Buckland had wasted the property and only
maintained out of it himself and one secular
chaplain, the king by Act of Parliament 3 July
1467, took back the priory, and on 25 July**
annexed it to Tewkesbury Abbey.
Meanwhile, incensed perhaps at the continued
resistance of the Lancastrians, and determined
to stamp out all the works of Henry, Edward
represented to Pope Pius II that the Eton build-
ings were unfinished, and the college could not
carry out its work. So the pope on 13 Novem-
ber 1463 issued a bull suppressing the college as
a separate entity, and incorporating it with St.
George's, Windsor. This ' Bull of Union,' as
it has been called, provided that the site was not
' to revert to profane uses,' and that ' its accus-
tomed charges were to be properly supported,'**
while its members were to retain their rank and
emoluments. It would not appear that the col-
lege or school ceased. It was, in fact, treated
much as the Hospital of St. John at Basingstoke,
when annexed to Merton by Walter Merton ; or
of St. Bartholomew, Oxford, when annexed to
Oriel College by Edward III ; or of St. James,
London, when annexed to Eton itself. The
effect was that the institution was not destroyed,
but all its surplus revenues, after meeting the
fixed charges, went to the absorbing college in-
stead of to its own augmentation. The union
so far took effect, as appears from entries in the
audit rolls relating to the subsequent retransfer
to Eton, that the bulk of the bells, plate, jewels,
and ornaments of the chapel, even the very
horses of the stable, were taken to Windsor.
The Eton Audit Rolls ceased from 1461 to
1467. King's College, which as regards its
building was in a much less advanced state than
Eton, seems to have been suspended. The list
of admissions of scholars at King's stops in 1459,
and was not resumed till 1466, when only three
scholars were elected. The school may have
gone on in a truncated form ; but whether there
were any scholars in college, after those existing
in 1463 had left, is doubtful. Clement Smythe
seems to have found his position as fellow so
precarious, that he returned to the teaching
profession, becoming head master of Winchester
at Michaelmas 1464, where he remained till
Lady Day 1467, when he again became head
master at Eton.
Provost Westbury wisely bowed to the storm
at the time. But two years later, 13 July 1465,"
* Pat. 7 Edw. IV, pt. iii, m. 5.
** ' Congrue tupportentur oncra consueta.'
11 Maxwell Lyte gives the date as 13 July 1463,
and says that in hit protest Westbury ignored the Bull
of Union. If 1463 were the correct date, Westbury
could hardly have done otherwise, as the bull was not
issued till four months later. But in point of fact
he did refer to what had been done two yean before,
in the words in which he protested against union by
' papal or any other authority.'
I67
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
' fearing grave prejudice to himself and the
college,' he protested before a public notary in
St. Martins le Grand, London, in an appeal
to the papal see : 'I never will consent to the
transfer of any persons of Eton to St. George's,
Windsor, or to its union or appropriation thereto,
by apostolic or any other authority . . . and if
I ever consented thereto — which I do not admit,
but altogether deny — I did so, not by my own
free will, but under fear such as may affect a
man of reasonably firm mind.'
Eton school, if it had ever entirely ceased, was
resumed either at Michaelmas 1466, or at the
beginning of I467,62 as appears from an imper-
fect and undated account roll which has been
hitherto unnoticed. It is rather difficult to make
out exactly what period this roll covers, since
dating from the first coming (primo adventu), it
gives 1 7 weeks' commons without details. It
then gives the third term with the usual details,
but extends this term to 27 weeks, and then
begins similar details for ' the first week of this
year ' and the rest of that term. This apparently
refers to the Michaelmas term of 1467, which
was the normal beginning of the college year.
The income for the period to 31 December 1467
amounted 10^321, but of this £13 was attri-
buted to a legacy from John Bower, one of the
earliest fellows, presumably for the obit, which
was afterwards maintained in remembrance of
him ; and £2 ids. was for an old debt of
Thomas Capron, paid by his wife. Apparently
only the provost, a temporary head master,
and half a dozen boys came at first, as the com-
mons ' at their first corning ' only amounted to
6s. id., and next week to <)s. 6d. By the end
of the quarter beginning at Lady Day the
weekly commons amounted to 401. At the
beginning of the third term, Midsummer Day,
there were the provost, 2 fellows, the head
master, usher, i chaplain, 6 clerks, and 20
' scholars, choristers, and servitors,' who gradu-
ally rose to 26. In the i6th week the number
of the scholars suddenly rose to 43, and by the
27th week to 52, though how the term managed
to have 27 weeks is a mystery. The rise in num-
bers was due to a new election held on 8 July
1467, the morrow of the translation of St.
Thomas the Martyr (Becket), the earliest possible
day according to the statutes. The election
roll is extant. It contains 71 names, 7 of which
are found on the roll for King's the following
year, though only one had then attained the
statutable age of 1 8, and one was no more than
1 5 years old, while 22 of them eventually went to
King's, showing that there were large gaps to
fill in that college also. Of those on the roll I 7
came from London, 7 from Hampshire, 4 from
Cambridgeshire, and the rest dispersedly from
various counties. Two of those elected to King's
this year seem to have declined admission, and
their places were taken by the two last on the
roll, one of whom was twenty-two years old, and
probably a scholar at the time of Henry VI, who
had gone ofFelsewhere meanwhile. The huge roll
of 71 must have been intended to supply a
very large deficiency in the full numbers at
Eton. All certainly were not admitted, as three
or four are found at the top of the roll next
year. But the majority must have been admitted.
This large election was made in anticipation of
the re-endowment of the college effected by
letters patent ten days later, 17 July I4&7,61
the grant being in frankalmoign, i.e. by way
of charity, to pray for the souls of King Edward
IV and his queen, Edward thus being sub-
stituted as founder for Henry VI. The main
items, apart from the apportus payable to alien
houses, were the hospital of St. John the Baptist,
Dorchester ; the priories of Langford — ' Hang-
inglangford ' it is usually called in the accounts
— in Wiltshire ; Brimpsfield, Gloucestershire ;
Modbury and Cowick, Devonshire ; Blakenham,
Suffolk ; St. Helen's, Isle of Wight ; most of the
possessionsof Ogbourne Priory,including Weedon
Beck ; and the reversion of St. James' Hospital,
now St. James' Palace, ' by Westminster,' after
the death of Roger Malmesbury, who on the
resumption had been appointed warden. Pov-
ington Priory,64 Dorset, was also included ; but
this, mysteriously enough, though granted 17 May
1474 to St. George's, Windsor, is found after-
wards among the Eton possessions, and was event-
ually exchanged in the time of Edward VI for
other property. It seems probable that the intro-
duction into the statutes of the oaths of the fellows
that they ' will not favour the damned opinions,
errors, or heresies of John Wycliff, Reginald
Pecok, or other heretic while he lives, on pain,
of perjury and expulsion ipso facto,' was effected
at this time. For the persecution of poor Pecok
was a Yorkist bid for the favour of the Church.
The head master shown in the roll of 1466-7
was Clement Smythe, who had returned from
Winchester at the reduced pay of j£iO a year,
to which amount, the same as that of the head
master of Winchester, instead of ^i 6 as contem-
plated by Henry's statutes, the salary of the head
master of Eton was permanently reduced until
the reign of Elizabeth. Clement Smythe was
paid for three terms only, showing that he came
at Lady Day 1467. Some scholars accompanied
or were found by the provost ' at his first advent,'
and were taught by one Henry Grymston, who
was paid 6s. 8d. fro informacione puerorum, and
then by ' Sir ' Walter Barbour. Richard Profett,
the principal servant, who like the rest suffered
a reduction of wages from £5 a year to £2, in
the absence of fellows, was sent on estates busi-
68 See Eton Audit Rolls.
168
M Pat. 7 Edw. IV, pt. iv, m. 13.
44 Pat. 14 Edw. IV, pt. i, m. i.
SCHOOLS
ness, and also ' to Cambridge in January for
"Sir" Walter Barbour, at a cost of 14*. 8</.'
Barbour filled up the rest of the first term till
Clement Smythe's return. He then seems to
have gone back to Cambridge to finish his course
and take his M.A. degree, after which, in 1470,
then described as magister, he succeeded Clement
Smythe in the head-mastership. John Upnor
came as bostiariui for two terms and five weeks,
and was succeeded in the following year by
Richard Hakier. By the end of the year
three fellows had returned, Richard Hopton, the
ex-head master, who was vice-provost, William
Weye, and William Strete. John Boner had
also returned, but only to die. Apparently five
choristers came, their places being temporarily
supplied by five boys who are called King's
choristers, and had sheets, blankets, shoes, and
surplices bought for them. The only element
of the college which never reappeared was the
almsfolk. They were finally dropped, and
were never resumed for 400 years.
The cost of getting restitution was consider-
able. Apart from 'a fresh salmon given to the
king at Windsor ' at a cost of lew., 61. Sd. was paid
for a letter addressed to the Bishop (sic) of York,
George Neville, then Chancellor of England, for
the restitution of the letters patent, 41. lod. for
writing two bills in Parliament, 6s. 8J. to the
king's attorney [general], Henry Sucell, 13*. 4^.
to the king's secretary for two letters, and for two
more under the Privy Seal 131. ^d. The writ-
ing of letters patent cost IOJ., their enrolment
6s. 8d. ; two fines to the king for two grants cost
£16 181. ; 5*. was paid to the valet of the
wardrobe for taking down arras in St. George's
College, Windsor ; and a letter of Privy Seal to
the Dean and Canons of the college of Windsor
for restitution of goods cost 6s. 8d. ; while the
official of the king's antechamber was given I Of.
For a licence in mortmain a fine of £8 was paid,
apparently for the grant of Goldcliff Priory in
Wales. Two letters to the pope cost only IOJ. ;
copies of the provisions to be had and writing
them cost y. ^d.t and writing Pope Calixtus'
bull 5*. Finally, the king's attorney, Henry
Sucell, received £i as a fee, and the solicitor,
Richard Lovell, 13*. ^d.
So speedily, however, in spite of all, were the
old customs renewed that the three bonfires
(' bencfyres*) on Midsummer eve and the eve of
St. Peter and St. Paul and of St. Thomas the
Martyr were duly provided for. The celebra-
tion of the feast of the Assumption was, however,
on a much reduced scale, only £4 odd being
spent, instead of over £30 ; and the costs of the
election were reduced to £2 2s. ^d. In subse-
quent years each item became fixed at £5 a
year.
In 1468 the regular Audit Rolls recommenced,
but the account for that year is made up from
I January, instead of from Michaelmas. It
shows an income of £3 70 instead of close on
£1,500 a year, as it was in 1458. No provost
or fellow received any pay this year ; though the
provost was paid for this year in the following
year, and for the rest of his life at the rate of
£20 a year, instead of £75 which he had pre-
viously received. The fellows never again rose
in number above seven,nor their salaries above £5.
There were only three chaplains instead of io,and
four clerks instead of 10 ; while in the first week
there were only 52 scholars, choristers, and servi-
tors in commons, instead of 109. In July the
number went down to 22, but this seems to
have been due to an outbreak of plague, their
commons being paid to outsiders ' at the time of
pest in the town.'
Wayneflete seems to have borne an important
part in the resuscitation of Eton, as the accounts
contain frequent entries of expenses of Provost
Westbury on visits paid 'to the lord of Win-
chester,' which in January 1468—9 were for ' be-
ginning the works of the church,' and ' for
providing money for them.' Notwithstanding
that Wayneflete was the principal overseer ap-
pointed by Henry's will, and was his chancellor
up to the battle of Northampton, in spite of
endeavours made to ruin him on charges of
oppression of his tenants in Edward's first Parlia-
ment, he seems to have soon been admitted to
favour. After the resuscitation of Eton he
loyally carried out to the best of his power the
trust reposed in him by Henry. No £1,000 a
year was now forthcoming from the Crown
revenues. So he had to do whatever was done
at his own expense, though he was himself ex-
pending vast sums on the foundation of his
own college of St. Mary Magdalen at Oxford.
Edward IV so far interested himself as to allow the
college, by privy seal of 21 March 1471—2, to
take so much chalk and flint from Windsor Park
'as shalbe necessary for the ful bylding of the
said churche.' Wayneflete's glazier provided the
glass of the east and other windows, and Wayne-
flete contracted, 15 August 1475," with a
Southwark** carpenter, Walter Nichol, who for
IOO marks was to make the stalls and rood loft
' for utter (i.e. west) parte . . . like to the Rode
lofte late made in Bisshop Wykehams Collage at
Winchestrc, and the inner part . . . with the
garnysshing of all the stalles . . . like to the
rode loft and quere of the collage of Seint
Thomas of Acres in London,* where is now the
Mercers' Hall. On 8 January 1479*' Wayneflete,
also at his own expense, contracted for a supply of
stone from Headington, near Oxford, for the
' werke he hath at Etone.' Abandoning the
vast nave, he built the antechapel at the west
** Willis and Clark, op. cit. i, $96.
14 The Bishop of Winchester's London house wa»
then in Southwark, close to St. Mary Ovcry.
v Willis and Clark, op. cit. i, 410.
169 22
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
end as it now stands, after the Wykehamical
model as seen at New College, All Souls, and
Magdalen Colleges. The church was finally
finished (on this truncated scale) in 1487-8, with
a series of elaborate paintings, still in part re-
maining behind the panelling, and discovered
when the church was ' restored ' in 1847. The
Prince Consort, who superintended the work,
would not allow the pictures to remain on view,
as being ' papistical.' From the drawings given
in Sir H. Maxwell Lyte's History they were
very beautiful. They have been variously attri-
buted to Italian and Flemish artists. But seeing
that the only painter mentioned by name is
William Baker, and that all the colours paid for
are in the Bursars' Rolls expressly given in
English as well as Latin (e.g. colon viridi, ang/ice,
vertagrece ; colore fulvo, sc. oker ; colors blodio,
anglice, blew), it is difficult to see why the 'anti-
patriotic bias ' which prevails in art has been
allowed to deprive English workmen of the
credit of the work. As Mr. J. W. Clark has
pointed out that the subjects and treatment are
very much the same as some paintings in the
Lady chapel of Winchester Cathedral, and the
subjects are taken from a book then newly pub-
lished in England, Vincent de Beauvais' Speculum
Historiale, the ascription of the work to foreign-
ers seems wholly unwarranted.
In 1469 the Audit Roll records only three
quarters of a year from New Year's Day to
Michaelmas, in order that the regular series from
Michaelmas to Michaelmas might be resumed.
During this time ' Sir ' William Darker was paid
y. j.d. for his expenses from Oxford for the
office of usher, and at Michaelmas he suc-
ceeded Hakyer. Clement Smythe retired in
February 1469-70 on a canonry at Windsor,
which he afterwards exchanged for one at War-
wick, where he died some twenty years later.
Though Eton recovered some of its possessions
in 1467, it was some years before the annexation
to Windsor was formally revoked. This was
done by a decree of Cardinal Archbishop Bour-
chier, 30 August 1476, in virtue of a bull of
Pope Paul II of 1470, which, on a petition from
Edward IV, stating that he had been misinformed
as to the unfinished state of the college, commis-
sioned the archbishop to inquire into the matter,
and, if satisfied, to revoke the former bull of
union. Proceedings were begun on this bull in
November and December 1470, during the
restoration of Henry VI, which lasted from
October to April 1470—1. A large sum, over £22,
was spent on ' rewards to doctors in law, nota-
ries, proctors, and clerks for expediting the Bull
for the separation of our college of Eton from
that of St. George's, Windsor.' The advantage
taken of the restoration thus to hurry on the
proceedings had no doubt an adverse effect on
the mind of Edward IV, and was the cause of
their being stopped, and of the commission re-
maining in abeyance for another six years. It
is not perhaps guessing too much if we credit
the final separation to the good offices of Thomas
Rotherham, who, though only a nominal Etonian,
admitted on one day to qualify him colourably
for admission to King's the next, was a Kingsman
of many years' standing, and in 1475 not only
diocesan of Buckinghamshire as Bishop of Lin-
coln, but also Lord Chancellor.
Many payments are recorded in that year for
gifts to divers of the council *8 for expediting the
bull directed to the cardinal archbishop. The
final item ' in part of the expenses of the
counsel of the college riding into Kent to the Lord
Cardinal to give sentence under the delegating
bull ' amounted to £4, while John Harper, valet of
the Crown, was given 30*. for bringing the
letters of privy seal for the restitution of the
college goods, the Dean of Windsor being ap-
peased with a trout, a pike, and wine at a cost
of 5*.
The first head master after the restitution was
Walter Barbour, coming in February 1470. Of
him nothing has hitherto been known, except
that he is entered in the Eton register as ' father
of Walter the hermit,' a person who may have
been well known then, but is unknown now.
Barbour was perhaps a relation of William of
Wayneflete, whose father is described in a deed "
of his great-niece, Juliana Chirchestyle, as
' Richard Patyn alias dicti Barbour.' He was an
Etonian, and on the roll for King's in I458.60
Barbour is recorded " in 1473-4 as the medium
of payment of lod. ' for the binding of a school-
book, viz. Ovid ' ; the first school-book mentioned
in the Audit Rolls.
In 1471 the number of the scholars, &c., rose to
71. We are able to recover the names of a few
of the scholars of this epoch, from the custom
springing up of boarding the scholars out when
they were ill, and entering the payments made
for them on the Audit Roll. Among them was
one John Gyott, who had necessaries bought for
him in 1469, and is described in 1475-6 as 'the
King's scholar,' having been presumably nomi-
nated by the king, the first recorded instance
of what grew to be a regular practice. Thus
William Kidylton, who got off to King's in
68 ' Diversis de consilio pro expedicione cuiusdam
bulle.' This may mean ' to divers counsel.'
69 15 Dec. 1497; in Magd. Coll. Oxon. Reg.
Admiss. (or C.), fol. 84^. Printed in Macray's Reg.
(new ser.), ii, p. ix.
60 Alumni Eton, gives it as 1457. But the dates of
the reigns of Henry VI and Edward IV in that work
are wrong, through not observing that the roll being
made up in July or the first half of August, the year
of the king is for this purpose a year later in years of
the Lord than that in which the year of the king
began.
61 Aud. R. 14 & 15 Edw. IV, 'pro ligatura libri
scole, viz. Ovidii.'
170
SCHOOLS
1478, and a chorister, William Marchall, were
in 1469-70 boarded for a time with Richard
Bernyeat. In 1472, besides Capland, Ellysmer,
Lute, Ralph Crete, no doubt a scion of the
family of Creykc, in the East Riding, who to
this day habitually bear the name of Ralph, all
of whom afterwards appear on the rolls for
King's, Philip Berte, no doubt of the family of
the Earls of Abingdon, John Parker, Henry
Reynold, Robert Cotton, Hyll, and Forde are
named. So in other years. A considerable ad-
dition to the Alumni Etonensn could be made
from these entries.
Barbour's ushers were William Darker, Janu-
ary 1470—4 ; then Maurice Bye, at Michaelmas
1474 ; Henry Brydde or Byrd, an Etonian, who
went to King's in 1470 ; and at Michaelmas
1475, Edward Huett.
Westbury died on II March 1477, devis-
ing to the college a house in Windsor. The
fellows first elected as provost one of themselves,
Thomas Barker," who was a Henrician fellow
and for many years vice-provost ; but the king
having nominated Henry Bost, Barker resigned,
fearing the king's anger equivalent to death, or,
as his epitaph puts it, cant hanari Nolem ; id
meminity mars indignatio regum. Henry Bost was
elected a fellow of Eton a few days before his
election as provost, to qualify him according to
the statutes. From this time forward, in spite
of the statutes, the provostship of Eton was
always treated as in the gift of the Crown, the
appointee being colourably elected a fellow first.
Bost was a distinguished person, being already
master of King's Hall, a foundation of Ed-
ward III, now absorbed in Trinity College,
Cambridge. He held office for twenty-five years,
and is said in his epitaph to have got wealth for
Eton through the influence of Edward's queen,
Elizabeth :
Illius auspiciis elemosyna conjugis uncti
Edwardi quart! larga fluebat opem.
This statement disproves the ' tradition ' that it
was Jane Shore through whom the grants were
obtained. This ' tradition ' may be dismissed to
the limbo of inventions with the similar ones
which made William of Wykeham buy his
pardon from Edward III through his mistress,
Alice Ferrers, and credits Chelsea Hospital to the
intervention of Nell Gwyn. There seems to
be no authority for the ascription of two pictures
at Eton and King's respectively to Jane Shore.
The queen's family, on the other hand, in the
person of her brother Anthony, Lord Wodevill,
and his relations, was specially commemorated by
an obit in Eton Chapel for having procured a
regrant of property in the city of London. The
provost's salary was raised in 1482-3 from £20
to £30, though the fellows' and masters' salaries
remained unchanged.
* Maxwell Lyte, op. cit. 83.
The head masters of this era reigned by no
means as long as the provosts. The next
master, David Hawbroke or Haukbroke, c.
1479, was another Wykehamist, as he may be
identified with David Haukbroke, who appears
in the Bursars' Rolls of Winchester College as
hostiarius or usher there, at first under Clement
Smythe and then under his successor, from Lady
Day 1464 to Michaelmas 1469. Whether in
the interim he was teaching some other school
does not appear. Several Audit Rolls are missing
in the reign of Edward IV. In 1482-3 the
usher was Thomas Fox, a Winchester scholar in
1473, succeeded at Midsummer by John Ash ton.
Hawbroke continued to Michaelmas 1483. From
Michaelmas 1 484 to 1 4 February 1 485-6, Thomas
Mache or Machy, unidentified, was master, with
John Ashton as usher. Machy seems to have been
dismissed and to have removed with himself a Virgil
belonging to the school. At least the Audit Roll
for the year records, ' paid to John Barston for
redemption of a Virgil furtively taken away * ;
while neighbouring items are ' for a lock and 12
keys to the library door ' and ' laid out on the
officials of the Court of Arches for the matter
of the College against Mr. Mache, and expenses
of Mr. William Attwater (a fellow, afterwards
Bishop of Lincoln) to London for 4 days,
2OJ. 4</.' In Mache's successor, William Hor-
man, head master from the middle of February
1485-6, Eton acquired from Winchester
(scholar 1468) and New College (scholar i July
1475 M) a famous man. He remained a fellow
of New College till his election at Eton, his
place there being filled 2 February 1485.** He
was head master of Eton for nine years, and then
was promoted to the head-mastership of Win-
chester, which was evidently regarded as a higher
place. He remained at Winchester from Lady
Day 1495 to Michaelmas 1501, when he re-
turned to Eton as a fellow. He was vice-pro-
vost for many years until his death 12 April 1535,
when he was buried in the church. His fame
has come down to our day in virtue of a school
book called Bulgaria* The frequent references
to Greek, and especially to the performance of
Greek plays, bears out Sir Thomas Pope's state-
ment in 1556 that in his day Greek learning
flourished at Eton. Herman's book involved
him in a fierce controversy with Robert
Whittington, a rival schoolmaster and school
author, who called himself Bcisus, to which he
and Lily, the high master of St. Paul's, replied
in a book entitled Anti bosticon. Herman's
" The scholars of New College up to 1854 were
really fellows, though they were called scholars during
their two yean of probation.
— There ii absolutely no foundation for the claim
that he was a Cambridge man, made in Cooper's
Athtnat Cantabrigieniti.
« Leach, Hut. Winch. Cttt. 217 ; Maxwell Lyte,
Eton, 110-13.
171
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
versatility is shown by his being also the author
of two works on anatomy, so probably he
had been one of the medical fellows of New
College. He gave to Eton 12 of the 100 MSS.
which the college now possesses.67 Under Hor-
man the ushers were Mr. Eryll, Christmas
1485-6 to Lady Day 1488 ; Thomas Lyrypyn,
1488 to Michaelmas 1489 and perhaps beyond;
from Michaelmas 1492 to Midsummer 1493
Lane, then Grey for three terms. Eryll was
Henry Earle, a Winchester scholar (1472) and
fellow of New College (1481-5). In a letter68
written at Winchester 17 October 1486, King
Henry VII asked ' the Regentes of owre
Universitie off Oxenforde ' to ' dyspense with
the regencie,' i.e. the ' contynuall abode there as
necessary regent by an hole yere ' of ' Maister
Henry Erie, huisshere of the gramer scole withyn
owre college of Eton, late commencyde in arte
withyn owre Universitie ' as ' the sayde maister
Henry is necessary and behofull for the goode
and formall contynuance yn lerninge off such
children and scolars which be att owre Exhibition
yn owre sayde college, and yff he shulde be
remevyd and chaungyde ther tyme myght turne
and slyde to dispendy.' Lyrypyn or Lyrpyn
was from the same colleges, and in 1 494 became
a fellow of Winchester, where his effigy in brass
may still be seen. He died 30 March 1509.
For Edward Powell, the next head master,
1494-6, recourse was again had to Oriel College,
and he was very probably an old Etonian.
Nothing seems to be known of his head-master-
ship at Eton ; but in after days he became an
eminent ecclesiastical lawyer, canon of Lincoln
and Salisbury, rector of the college of St. Ed-
mund there, and D.D.69 He got some favour for
writing in 1 523 a defence of the seven sacraments
against Martin Luther, whom he dubbed ' smoky
friar and eminent Wickliffite ' ; but more dis-
favour for a tract against the divorce of Queen
Catherine, and was executed 30 July 1540 as a
traitor for denying the royal supremacy. His
successor at Eton, Nicholas Bradbrigg or Brad-
bridge, came in July 1496, with Haffbrd,
Haward, or Howard as usher, who gave place in
1498 to Such for half a year, followed by
Clerke for half a year, and then by Barrett for
two years. Haward was perhaps Philip Haward,
who went to King's in 1493, and Barrett John
Barrett, who went to King's in 1495. Brad-
bridge held for five years and left at Michaelmas
1501. Two or three years later he became head
master of Chichester Grammar School. A
canonry and prebend in the cathedral had been
annexed to the head-mastership of this school by
Bishop Story in I497,70 which caused it to be re-
garded at this time as promotion by the masters
67 Wasey Sterry, op. cit. 67.
68 Anstey, Epist. Acad. (Oxf. Hist. Soc.), no. 334.
69 Wood, Athen. Oxon. 53.
70 V.C.H. Sussex, ' Schools,' ii, 404-5.
both of Eton and Winchester. Of Robert
Yong, who came as master at Michaelmas 1501,
nothing is known. He only stayed for a year.
John Smyth, who succeeded at Michaelmas 1502,
may be identified with that one of the name who
was third on the roll from Eton to King's in
1492 ; while John Vyse the usher was a scholar
of Winchester (1495) and of New College
(i497).71 The next usher, William Snelle, was
a Reading boy, scholar of Winchester 1497,
and fellow of New College 1505, is. 8d. being
the cost of fetching him from Oxford. King
Henry VII visited the college on 21 October with
' divers magnates ' at a cost of £ 1 9 CM. 9^.
John Smyth held office till Michaelmas 1507.
On 27 February 1504" Roger Lupton was
made provost by the king, after a colourable
election as fellow. Lupton was one of the
successful civil servants and ecclesiastical lawyers
who obtained the chief preferments in the
Church as their pay. He was a north country-
man, born at Sedbergh 73 in Yorkshire, on the
borders of Lancashire, in July 1456. At Cam-
bridge he took the degree of Bachelor of Canon
Law in 1483, and was presented by Richard III
to the rectory of Harlton in Cambridgeshire
in 1484. As his favourite description of him-
self is ' Doctor of Canon ' or * of decrees,' it
may be presumed that he duly took the degree
of Doctor of Canon Law. In the interval of
fifteen years which elapsed before he again re-
ceived clerical preferment from the Crown he
practised in the ecclesiastical courts. He was
made a canon of Windsor 24 November 1500,
and it is to this preferment he probably owed
his election to Eton. In his long provostship
of thirty-one years, no one, not even Wayne-
flete, left so great a mark on the college. Its
most striking and conspicuous portion, the great
gateway tower of the inner quadrangle and the
splendid range of buildings on either side of it,
the provost's lodgings, which front the visitor on
entrance, and form the western side of the quad-
rangle, together with the whole northern range
of buildings in the outer court, Long Chamber,
and the old school, now called the Lower School,
on the left of the outer entrance, are his handi-
work. He himself reposes under a stately monu-
ment in the beautiful little chantry chapel on
the north side of the ' church,' in which are
collected the monuments of the pre-Reformation
provosts. Thus Lupton 's Tower and Lupton's
Chantry still perpetuate his name at Eton.
Long Chamber was the first of Lupton's
works, and may have been built at his own cost,
71 Alumni Eton. 6.
" Maxwell Lyte, op. cit. 6 1 1. But Alumni Eton.
gives his election as fellow on 22 Feb. 1503. There
is something wrong about the dates. Cooper in
Athen. Cant, probably gives the dates rightly, as fellow
on 1 6 Feb. and provost 27 Feb. 1502—3.
" Leach, Early Forks. Schools, ii, xli.
I72
SCHOOLS
as the only entries relating to it in the accounts
are 'for cleaning the new chamber' in 1504-5,
' for a lamp for the new chamber of the college
boys' in 1 506-7,** and 'for a pair of hinges
for the chamber of the Master Informator ' in
1511—12. But the accounts for 1503-4 are
missing and the expense of the building was prob-
ably entered in the rolls for that year. Payment
was made of 2os. for ' old earnest-money " at the
time of building the new school," and for ' work on
the roof of the Almshouse for 1 5 days and of the
school (gymnasia) for 2 days ' in 1514-15. Mr.
J. W. Clark thinks this was not a new building,
but a rebuilding. But the chief reasons assigned
are that in 1469-70 there was a payment for
twelve beds ' pro nova camera puerorum collegii.'
This is no proof that the boys all slept in one
chamber, but, on the contrary, suggests that they
were divided into six separate chambers, with
no more than 12 boys in each, and that a new
chamber had for some reason been added ; per-
haps one of the extinct fellows' chambers. In
1470—1 tilers were paid for three weeks' work
' about the repairs of the hall, the scholars'
chamber, and the new house by the pantry,'
while another man was paid ' for clearing the
underground vault and the boys' latrine.' This
shows, Mr. Clark says, that ' the boys' latrine
was by the sewer which still passes under the
east of Long Chamber.' But he himself gives
quotations which bring the sewer into connexion
with the kitchen. The fact is, the open sewer
probably then, as at St. Cross Hospital still, passed
all round the buildings. The first entry quoted
brings the boys' chamber in question into con-
nexion with the hall and pantry, that is, with the
west side of the inner quadrangle, and probably re-
fers to the new chamber only. In the Audit Roll
of 1475—6 is positive proof, which has been over-
looked, that they were not all in one chamber.
This is an entry of payment of 3^. to ' Mr.
Walter Barbour (the schoolmaster) for a lock and
key for the second chamber of the scholars ' ;
while in another roll for the latter part of the
same year 8</. was paid for a lock and key
camtre puerorum, which must be a different
chamber and should be translated, not ' the,' but
*a* boys' chamber. So in 1498—9 a payment
is made 'for repairs of the boys' chambers'
(cubicuhrum). In 1506—7 lOi. was paid to 'one
cleaning the children's chambers ' (uni mundanti
" Willii and Clark, op. cit. 417, 430. What Mr.
Clark describes at ' the room or enclosure called the
Gymnasium ' is of course the school. Maxwell Lyte,
op. cit. 98, has by mistake transferred the entry about
the new school to the earlier year I $06—7. From a
reference to the ' great west gate by the kings high-
way next the Almshouse ' in 1499-1 5°°> a°d to the
'great west gate by the almshouse' in 1516-17, it is
clear that the almshouse stood where Upper School
now stands.
71 Pro antijuis ami ; but perhaps it means ' the
old arras.'
cameras puerorum). In the same year mention is
made of ' the chambers of commoners ' (cubiculii
commensalium). Provost Lupton, with the wealth
of accumulated livings and canonries and lucra-
tive legal and civil offices, such as the clerkship of
the Hanapcr, which he held in 1509, and the
mastership in Chancery, bestowed on him in 1 529,
was not content with the four chambers formerly
assigned to the provost. Wishing to extend and
rebuild the provost's lodging on a magnificent
scale, he had first to move the school and the
masters' and scholars' chambers. So he rebuilt
them anew on the ampler spaces of the outer court,
now the schoolyard. That it was considered an
improvement at the time is shown by Long Cham-
ber, and not the smaller separate chambers of Win-
chester, having been adopted as the model at the
re-foundation of Westminster by Queen Eliza-
beth, though a Winchester man was made the
first head master. But in the long run it proved
a mistake. The life in Long Chamber became
that of a barracks and a bear-garden, with the
consequence that college at Eton was never full
and the scholarships went begging. Not till
after the middle of the 1 9th century was civiliza-
tion introduced by annexing the master's cham-
bers at the east end and the usher's at the west
end, and cutting Long Chamber up into separate
cubicles.
As soon as the new school and chambers were
finished in 1515-16 the 'old buildings' on the
west side of the quadrangle were pulled down,
and on 2 March 1517 ' the first stone was layd
yn the foundacyon off the west parte of the
college, whereon ys buylded Mr. Provost's logyn
the gate and the lyberary.' The Library is now
Election Chamber (Clark), or Election Hall
(Maxwell Lyte), and the whole range is now the
Provost's lodging, though his front door is to be
found in Weston's Yard. The Lupton Chantry
was completed by 1515 and its chaplain endowed
next year. Lupton's obit was kept from that
time onwards, though he was still alive, on
1 1 January,76 but was changed after his death to
the day on which he died, 27 February. For
presence at it the provost received 2s. 8d.t the
master if. 4^., the usher 8d., and the scholars
and choristers \d. each.
Besides extending the boys' quarters, and, we
may suppose, enlarging the school, Lupton seems
to be entitled to the credit of another most im-
portant innovation, the creation of Playing-fields,
probably the first and certainly the best and
most extensive enjoyed by any school. Thanks
to the latest addition of the magnificent ' Agar's
Plough,' this they still remain. It is certain
that these Playing-fields have had no little share in
making Eton what it is. Before this time it is
probable, as will be shown later a propos of
" Maxwell Lyte, op. cit. 105, probably through a
misprint, says 21 Jan.
'73
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
' montem,' that the boys had no place for play
in college, but, like Winchester, marched out
two and two to the nearest hill, Salt Hill, to
play there. The fellows had always enjoyed a
garden, but the boys do not seem to have had
any open space. In 1506—7 we come across
for the first time a mention of Playing-fields by
the college, 4^. being paid 'for clearing the
drain in the boys' fields ' (in eampis puerorum) ;
while in 1510-11 a shilling was paid 'for a pad-
lock and key to the Playing-meadow close ' (pro
sera pensili et clave ad clausuram prati lusorii).
In 1514-15 they appear in English under the
name which they retained for three centuries,
' Playing-leas,' a term which is of course much
more correct than the modern Playing-fields.
The ' clockeeper ' was paid ' for tiling theforica
at the playing-leys.' So in 1523-4 a shilling
was paid to John Grome (the groom) for work-
ing 'in le plaing lees' in carrying out soil for
three days. Frequent references occur after this
to the Playing-leas or Playing-leasowe, which
became an established institution.
Another institution which is perhaps also due
to Lupton, at all events it makes its first appear-
ance in his time, but is now extinct, though it has
been preserved at Westminster, was that of a
yearly play at Christmas.
Throughout the history of the college some-
thing in the nature of theatricals had always
taken place in the boy-bishop ceremony ; while
mummers and strolling players had often per-
formed in hall at Christmas under the name of
minstrels (ministrallii), mimes (mimis)y and actors
(kistrioniius). Thus in 1482-3 is. 8d. was
paid to certain mimes dancing (saltantibus) before
the provost and fellows on 2 January, and in
1505 ' the king's players received ' 2s. But in
1519 we find George the tailor receiving
6s. lod. for ornaments for the play (vestifici pro
ornamento Jusorio), and in 1526—7 the Informator
is paid 14.5. 'for the apparatus of the players at
Christmas,' and a regular stock of clothes appears
to have been kept by the head master for the
purpose, 8s. yd. being paid him ' for repairs of
the clothes of the players' in 1 531-2," and
next year 5*. zd. ' for the clothes for the use of
the players on Christmas day,' which in the
paper draft account, which has also been pre-
served for this year, appears as ' for clothes for
the use of the plays' (pro vestibus ad usum
ludicrorum). We shall see that Nicholas Udal
took a troupe of boys to London to perform a play
before Thomas Cromwell. Even in the Puritan
days of Edward VI we find in 1549 ' 8d. for
making 2 jerkins for players' ; and in 1551 '6
lyncks for the comedy in the haull ' cost 2*., the
comedy or Latin play being no doubt presented
by the head master ; while 6s. 8d. was paid 'to
Mr. Ussher for an Interlude that was played in
" Audit Bk. 2 1 & 22 Hen. VIII. The head master
was Richard Cox.
the haull.' For in the statutes of Westminster
School it was provided that the head master
should present a Latin and the usher an English
play. In Elizabeth's day the play flourished.
Then in 1566-7 we find the entry : ' Spent at
the play in candles 10 Ib. 15^., tenter hookes
for the playe [no doubt to hang the curtains on]
i8d.,' while 'Mr. Scholmasters charges about
the playe last Christmas ' were ' 20*.' A hun-
dred years later, 1663-4, we find : 'Given to
the scholars by consent for acting their comedies
last year, j£i.' When these plays ceased to be
performed does not appear. In the 1 8th century
plays were performed in Long Chamber, and
also by oppidans, but were surreptitious and un-
authorized, if not illegal.
Lupton held the provostry for some thirty years.
In 1527 he founded77* the free grammar school
of Sedbergh, his native place, connecting it with St.
John's College, Cambridge, by six scholarships, for
which j£6oo was given to the college, and by vest-
ing in the college the appointment of the master,
adding in 1537 another ^400 for two fellowships
and two more scholarships. The school, re-
covered from the clutches of Edward VI through
the fiery eloquence of Dr. Thomas Lever, Presi-
dent of St. John's, and re-endowed with the
fragments of several chantries, attained great fame
in the I7th century, and is now again so pros-
perous that it is sometimes called the Eton of the
North.
In 1531 Lupton, as provost, had to carry out
an exchange with Henry VIII, by which the
college gave the king St. James's Hospital in the
Field with 185^ acres belonging to it, 64 acres
south and 94 acres north of the high road from
Charing Cross to Eye (? Hay) Hill, and 1 2 acres
at Knightsbridge. The college reserved the
outlying lands of the hospital at Hampstead, the
White Bear (Bere) in West Cheap, and a house
in Westminster. The grant to the king was
made on 24 December 1531. Two days after
they received in exchange the manor of ' Bawd-
wyns ' at Dartford in Kent, and the rectory of
Newington, and lands at Chattisham, Suffolk,
which had been possessions of monasteries sup-
pressed by Wolsey and given to his college at
Ipswich. So that once again Eton was endowed
out of dissolved monasteries. The transaction
has been misrepresented as a sort of robbery, and
a rhyme, ' Henricus octavus took away more than
he gave us,' is quoted as if it proved the case.
The rhyme, however, is evidently modern, and
only one of the usual libels on Henry VIII
founded on ignorance and prejudice. The ex-
change was no robbery. The immediate result
of it was to increase the income of the college by
some j£S5 a year, equivalent to at least £1,100
a year to-day, while their only increased expense
was for the rent of ^3 6s. 8d. for the provost's
house near Westminster. Apparently the college
77a Leach, Early Torks. Schools, ii, 289-335.
174
SCHOOLS
no longer used the hospital as a provost's residence ;
at least for the previous fifteen years it, or a great
part of it, had been let to Mr. Peter Carmeliano
at the very large rent of £5 a year, and after-
wards to Archdeacon Magnus, who was much
employed as ambassador to Scotland. They got
nothing from the lands, which went to the
maintenance of the sisters of the hospital. A
* robbery ' was in a sense committed, in that
Henry VIII suppressed the useless leper hospital to
turn it into a palace. But Eton was particefn cri-
minisy as it now derived rents from the lands of the
hospital which had previously gone to support its
inmates. The college paid the pension to one
of the sisters, Anne or Agnes, but as that was
only 131. \d. a year, the burden was not great.
At that time no one could anticipate that 200
years afterwards the fields round the leper hospital
would become valuable building land, seeing that
even when Burlington House was built in the
1 8th century it was purposely built as at an
ultima Thule, beyond which no houses could
go. Moreover, as both the Dartford and the
Hampstead land are now selling at building
prices far higher than those which would have
been reached by a sale of St. James's Street a
century and a half ago, the present benefit is
greater also.
Lupton resigned the provostry of Eton in
1535, retaining his canonry at Windsor, the
rectories of Caistor, Brancepeth, Skipton, Hazle-
ton, and the chapel of Ascot. In his latter days
he was accused to Cromwell of divers ecclesiastical
and moral offences, which he repudiated with
scorn in a letter of 29 January 1540: 'I beg
your favour. I have lived 83$ years and have
been taken for an honest man, and now a sort of
light men inform you to the contrary. But I
will be reported by all the honest men of Eton
and Windsor ' ; and again on 3 February : ' How
can any man of my age offend in that thing which
is laid to my charge ? I will be judged by any
1 2 honest persons in Windsor and Eton.' On
23 February 1540 he made his will. Besides
his obits at Eton and Sedbergh, he now provided
for an obit at St. John's College, Cambridge.
He gave £16 131. \d,
to be bestowed in ij dinners in Eton Hall, one at the
day of my burial], and another at my monthes mind.
To buy blacke govvnes for 20 poore men that here
torches at the day of my buriall, £10. Item to be
distributed to Mr. Provost of Eton, the masters [i.e.
fellows], scholemaster, preistes, clerkes, children [i.e.
scholars], quiristers [choristers], officers of the college
and children of the town at my day of buriall and
monethes mynde in manner and forme followinge,
£19 1 6s. SJ. ; first to the Provost the day of my
buryall 1 3/. \d. ; item, to 7 masters and the scole-
master lot. a piece, £4; item to the chaplcins and
usher 3/. ^J. a piece, 3 j/. 4^. ; item to 3 score and
10 children of the colledge and quiristers, i6</. a pcce,
£4 1 3/. tfd. ; item, to a hundreth children of the
town, %J. a pece, £3 61. %J.
There were also to be forty ' straunge preists '
to sing mass ; and ' to poore folkes at Eton \d. a
pece, j£io,' so that there were fifty of them.
Similar gifts of half the amount were to be given
at his month's mind. This is the first mention
of oppidans in the English form of ' children of
the town,' still in use at Westminster, and the
first indication of any large number being at
Eton. From no separate mention being made of
'commoners* in college, if they were not pur-
posely ignored on account of their rank and riches,
it follows that they must have been included in
the 100 'town boys.'
On the retirement of John Smythe at
Michaelmas 1507 John Goldyve, Etonian and
Kingsman, came as head master. He seems,
however, to have been fetched from Oxford, as
Mr. Arderne's expenses to Oxford to inquire for
a new ' Preceptor ' were 31. id. ; and Thomas
the butler rode there with letters for the said
'Preceptor,' and Mr. 'Gowldyffe* himself was
paid los. for coming 'for the said office of Pre-
ceptor.' He retired in 1510, and in 1521 is
found, like his predecessor Bradbridge, pre-
bendary of Highley at Chichester and master of
the grammar school there. Thomas Philips,
master for a year in 1510-11, is probably the
Thomas Phylyppys who took his M.A. degree at
Oxford I February 1508-9 and afterwards sup-
plicated forhisB.C.L. 7 May 1524. In Thomas
Erlysman, who was fetched from Oxford and
received 101. for his expenses at his first coming
at Michaelmas 1511, Winchester and New
College again furnished a head master, who, like
Clement Smythe and Herman, was promoted to
the head-mastership of Winchester, viz. at Lady
Day 1515, where he stayed for ten years.
Robert Colyar, the hostiarius under him, gave
place at Christmas 1512 to George Hals or
Hale, who also was sought for at Oxford, and
had a competitor, ' Sir ' Risby, who received 5*.
for coming for the office of hostiarius. After a
year and a half Hale took the better-paid post
of chantry chaplain of Provost Bost. John
Holonde or Holland (King's 1506) succeeded
and held for three or four years. But Michael-
mas 1520 found Henry Halked/8 head of the
roll to King's in 1513, in his stead. In Feb-
ruary 1521 he was followed by Thomas Pery,
an Eton scholar, whose name is preserved as
such, because he was ill in 1514—15. His suc-
cessor, Robert Aldrich, or Aldryge, as he is
generally spelt, was an Etonian and Kingsman,
on the roll of 1507. He had at least one noble
pupil in Richard Lord Grey of Ruthyn, who is
commemorated by a brass in Eton Chapel.
Aldrich is said to have taught ' according to the
old Winchester system.' This is likely enough,
but the passage in the life of Sir Thomas Smith
on which this statement is based refers, not to
" He appears in Alumni Eton, as Halhcad and Hal-
stead.
'75
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Eton, but to Saffron Walden School, at which
Smith is said to have been educated. Aldrich
left Eton after six years' teaching to go on an
embassy to France and the pope. On Lupton's
resignation in 1535 he was, in compliance with
a royal mandate, elected provost, the first, and,
for almost exactly 200 years, the only Etonian
and Kingsman to become provost. Next year
he was appointed to the bishopric of Carlisle,
which he held with the provostry in breach of
all custom, consecration to a bishopric vacating
all other preferment. He was also almoner to
Queen Jane (Seymour), and when she died
solemnly received her body on its passage through
Eton to Windsor. He was succeeded as master
at Lady Day 1521 by yet another Wykehamist,
Thomas White, scholar of Winchester 1508, of
New College 1513 to 1520. The identity is
made sure, in spite of the commonness of the
name, by the protocol at New College, which
states that his successor was appointed in place
of him ' promoti ad informandum pueros Etone,'
while Robert Walker's costs in riding to Oxford
with letters for him were 2s. id. John Gold-
wyn79 succeeded White at Lady Day 1525.
His provenance has not been traced. As usher
he had John Barons, who, having come in
February 1524, stayed no less than four and a
. half years, to Midsummer 1528. Goldwyn
enjoys the distinction of having had his time-
table preserved, thus furnishing the first authentic
information of the Eton curriculum. A free
grammar school had been maintained at Cuck-
field in Sussex from about 1504 by Edmund
Flower, citizen and merchant tailor of London,
which in 1521 he endowed by his will. The
endowment, being worth only some ,£6 ids. a
year, was augmented by William Spicer, rector
of the neighbouring parish of Balcombe, with a
new endowment, producing another £5 a year,
and settled by a deed of i October 1528. This
provided that the schoolmaster 'shall teach the
scholars in the said school grammar after the
form, order, and usage taught in the Grammar
School at Eton near Windsor, from form to
form, according to the acts and rules there made,
kept, and used, and to keep the houres of learn-
ing in the said school.' Annexed to the deed
was the oath of the master in seven items, the
last binding him to teach ' after the form and
usage taught in the Grammar School of Eton,
the which form for this time is as it followeth.'
The ' Form ' 80 is fortunately preserved at Cuck-
79 Maxwell Lyte, op. cit. 105, quoting Strype's
Life of Sir T. Smith, 6.
80 Though printed in Carlisle's End. Gram. Schools
(ii, 594) in 1818, it has escaped the notice of all the
Eton historians, as the first authentic curriculum of
Eton. Carlisle's copy contains several mistakes of his
own in addition to those in the Vicar's Book. They
are corrected in the abstract now given. Cf. V.C.H.
Suss, ii, 417.
field, though only in a copy, in ' the Vicar's
Book,' an MS. written about 1626 ; it contains
some evident mistakes arising from misreading
of the originals. The mere fact that a tailor
and a parson could endow a school to be carried
on like Eton shows how little at this time the
great and famous ' Public ' schools differed from
other grammar schools, to which the local gentry
flocked, and where they enjoyed the same kind
of teaching as the great schools and sometimes
perhaps better teachers.
The ' Form ' shows that there were six Forms,
and below Form I ' the children first beginning
the grammar.' These last were to ' read the
accidence of Mr. Stanbridge,' a famous Wyke-
hamist, first usher of Magdalen College School
and afterwards master of Banbury School, which
Bishop Oldham in 1515 made the model for
Manchester Grammar School. After many
centuries Stanbridge's grammar had superseded
' Old Donatus.' In this the boys were to be
' diligently exercised every working-day and
upon . . . Saturday in the morning every one
of them rehearse and render by heart all the
lessons they have learned all the week before,
and if Saturday be holyday, then the said render
be made the working day before.'
It is ordained also that every working-day, Friday
and Saturday except, one of the 8 parts of Reason
[i.e. parts of speech], with the verb according to the
same, that is to say, Nomen with Amo, Pronomen
with Amor, and so forth, be said by heart by all the
learners of the accidence, if they have learnt that part,
and of all the First, Second, and Third Forms.
This -was to be ' by and by after 6 of the clock '
in summer and 7 in winter. ' After the part
done the learners of the accidence shall labour
their lessons, which lesson the Master shall hear
more often or more seldom after his discretion
and to the more profit of the scholars.'
Form I were to learn Stanbridge's English
Rules called the ' Parvula.'
These rules shall be said by and by after the Part
done, and upon repeating the rules the Master shall
cause them to make small and easy Latins, proper and
such as the children may understand and have a
delight in.
Form II the same, ' except that the Master may
by his discretion add more matter to the Latin
for the Second Form.'
These Latins must be so given that the children
may write81 them before breakfast. After their
breakfast one of the next Form above, by the Master's
assigning, shall read to them one Rule for the next
day and in the Master's presence ; upon which the
scholars of this Form shall apply themselves to the
understanding construing saying and answering to the
parts of their Latins unto the dinner-hour fn a.m.].
If the Master's discretion shall think the babies
able easily to overcome it, he may give them also.
I76
81 Not as in Carlisle, End. Gram. Schools, ' recite.'
SCHOOLS
*ome Latin words from Stanbridge's Collection, or
small and light matter in Latin to be rendered by the
Babies by and by after one of the clock ; which done,
after a convenient pause, the said babies shall render
their Latins by heart, construe them and answer to
the part of them.
This applied to the first four days of the
week. On Friday they were to say Sum, a,fui,
or some other verb out of the rules. Then they
were to be examined in the understanding of the
rules learnt in the week and say them by heart
in the afternoon.
If the Master" have time sufficient before the time
of breakfast the Master, or some Scholar of an higher
form in the presence of the Master, shall declare to
them one little piece of the Pater Noster, or the Ave
M.iri.i, the Credo or the Treatise of the Manners
called a Quos decet in mensa, or the Ten Command-
ments, the Seven Deadly Sins, or the Five Witts,*4 or
some other proper saying in Latin meet for the
Babies, and especially such as is meet for Christian
People to learn, as the Articles of Our Belief or any-
thing like.
On Saturday before breakfast Form I 'ren-
dered ' their ' one little piece ' of religious in-
struction, ' construed it and answered to parts of
it.' After breakfast they rendered their Latins
learnt in the week. ' At afternoon they shall
learn to write or read Legends, or the Psalter,
to become more prompt in reading.' Not, be
it observed, for the sake of 'religious instruction,
but for the enunciation.
In the second form the scholars shall read the
genders'* of Whittington and after them done the
Heteroclites of Whittington. These rules shall be
said in the morning and by and by one lesson shall
be read unto them for next day and they shall learn
Latins with the Pint Form. After their breakfast a
lecture of Cato after the new interpretation shall be
read unto them, which they shall construe again at
afternoon and answer to the parts of it, which done
they shall say their Latins by heart, construe them
and parse them. Upon Friday after breakfast they
shall render their rules ; and at afternoon . . . their
constructions. On Saturday they shall say and render
all things with the first form.
In the third form the rules shall be the Preter-
tenses* and Supines of Whittington, and after these
done the Defectives of the said Whittington. They
shall have Latins. Their constructions shall be of
Terence or of Erasmus's Similitudes or of his familiar
communication called Colloquia Erasmi.
In the Fourth form they shall have for their Rules
the Regiments of Whittington which he calleth Con-
"' Not as in Carlisle, ' If they may have sufficient
time before breakfast.'
* Not as in Carlisle, ' verses for the Mariners,
called Quos dicet in mensa.'
** i.e. the five senses.
" Not as in Carlisle, ' gradus.'
M Sic. It was no doubt Preterites in the original,
but the copyist of 1626 could not read the writing
of i oo yean before.
cinnitates Grammatices. They shall have Latin
constructions and other things except rules with the
third form to the intent that the better learned may
instruct the less learned.
In the Fifth Form they shall read the Versifying
Rules. They shall have w or Ovid's Epistles.
In the stead of Latins they shall construe Virgil,
Sallust or Horace or any other meet for them ; and
for their better exercise they shall male every week
verses and epistles.
It is remarkable that the latest thing in classical
schools to-day is to return to this practice of
remitting verse-making and original Latin prose
to Form V. Form VI 'have for their rules
Copiam Erasmi,' i.e. Erasmus's book on copious-
ness of diction, ' wherein it is taught to make
88 ; all other things they shall read with the
Fifth Form.'
In every Form
the Rules shall be said in the morning, and by and by
more rules given unto them ; after 9 of the clock
the constructions shall be given them ; after I of the
clock the constructions shall be heard ; about 3 of
the clock the Latin shall be rendered.
The master may begin to hear the First Form if it
pleaseth him, so that the tender babes and young
scholars be not forslowed,** but ever taught plainly
and substantially, soberly and discreetly entreated,
and handled without rigour or hastiness in deed word
and countenance. The Master also must attend
that his scholars keep a due and whole pronunciation
of their words without precipitation, and that they
speak Latin in every place.
Considering the way that pronunciation and
enunciation are now almost wholly neglected in
schools, which to make up for the neglect have
to start Debating Societies and Shakespeare
Readings, and these only attended by a select
few, it is by no means clear that we have not
something to learn in the way of school teach-
ing from the much decried scholars of pro-
Reformation times.
Next comes the usual fulmination against
holidays :
The Scholars shall have no Remedy but once a week,
and that shall never be on the Friday ; and also after
2 of the clock, because they may render most of their
learning, or they depart the school, without*0 the
assent of one of the Controlers.
The word ' remedy,' rtmtdium laboris, for holi-
day is now confined to Winchester.
Lastly, to show that the imitation of Eton
" This blank is a proof that the copyist of 1626
could not read the older writing properly.
* Again the copyist could not read the old writing.
* Si(. Not as in Carlisle, ' forestowed.' But it is
possible that the 17th-century copyist has misread
the word, as ' forslowed ' does not seem to have much
more meaning than ' forestowed.'
* Not as in Carlisle, ' with.'
»77
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
was not to be a mere demonstration at starting,
it was provided
That these acts and orders do continue until such
time as the Controlers be notified of others being
taught in Eton more profitable to scholars ; then it
is lawful to the Controlers to add to the forms that
be more profitable and to leave what are not profit-
able at their discretion.
In 1529" came Richard Cox, the fourth
Etonian and Kingsman to become master.
Born at Whaddon, Buckinghamshire,92 he went
from Eton to King's in 1519, taking his B.A.
degree 1523-4. Wolsey made him a junior
canon of his new Cardinal College at Oxford,
so he took his M.A. degree there, 2 July 1526.
He first appears in the Eton audit book as
Informator for the year beginning Michaelmas
1529, with Edmund Janson or Jonson, a Win-
chester and New College man, who had come
a term before, as Hostiarius ; and he continued
there till 1535. The ushers under him after
Jonson were William Pury or Pery, Michaelmas
1532 to Midsummer 1533 ; and William Bag-
ley, who had gone to King's in 1527, from
Midsummer 1533. On retirement from the
mastership Cox returned to Cambridge, and took
his B.D. degree in 1535, and his D.D. in 1537.
On 24 November 1540, he was made Arch-
deacon of Ely on the king's appointment. He
was one of the commissioners for making statutes
for the cathedrals of the new foundation estab-
lished by Henry VIII, on the dissolution of the
monastic chapters and monasteries, and was him-
self made a canon on the new foundation of
Ely. He was designated Bishop of Southwell
when that collegiate church was intended to be
converted into a cathedral ; but the execution of
the intention was deferred for 335 years. On
8 January 1543-4 he became dean of the new
Oxford cathedral at Oseney, and, when it was
abolished, Dean of Christ Church, which he
scandalized by introducing a wife. He was
tutor and then almoner to Edward VI, first as
prince then as king ; Canon of Windsor 1548 ;
Dean of Westminster 1549. On Mary's in-
coming he was sent to the Tower for treason,
but let out, though deprived of all his prefer-
ments. He fled to Frankfort. On Elizabeth's
accession he returned to become Bishop of Ely
29 July 1559, took an active part in the con-
troversies of the reign, and died 22 July 1581.
That he was a good Latin verse writer is shown
by his correspondence with Walter Haddon, his
pupil at Eton (on the roll for King's 1533), who
had written from his sick bed : —
Vix caput attollens e lecto scribere carmen
Qui vult, is voluit scribere plura. Vale.
" Not 1528, as Maxwell Lyte.
" In Cooper, Athen. Cant., he is absurdly guessed
to have ' had his first education in the small Benedic-
tine Priory of St. Leonard Snelshall, Whaddon,' as if
Benedictine priories taught outsiders.
Dr. Cox to Walter Haddon his scholar : —
Te magis optarem salvum sine carmine, fill,
Quam sine te salvo carmina multa. Vale.
By a fortunate accident a curriculum of Eton
during Cox's term of office has been preserved in
the town records of Saffron Walden, in Essex.
There had long been a grammar school there,
the monoply of which was asserted in I423-93
By deed 3 December 1517, John Leche, vicar
of that place, possibly the Winchester scholar of
that name in 1445, endowed the Trinity Gild,
which he had assisted to found three years before,
'with land for a priest so that' when the gild
' be abill to make the seid service worth £ i o a
year . . . the seid preest shalbe a profound
gramarion, to thintent that he may teche gramar
within the towne of Waldeyn, after the rourme
of the scole of Winchester or of Eton.' The
endowment did rot take effect till his sister,
Dame Jane Bradbury, by deed of 18 May 1525,
gave further endowment, and appointed William
Dawson, clerk, 'approvyd as an able syngyng
man and a profound gramarion, accordyng to
the mynd of Master Leche ' with proviso that
every future master should be 'a suffycyent
grammarion to tech chyldren grammer after the
order and use of techyng grammer in the
scolys of Wynchester and Eton.'
To ensure this someone at Walden obtained
from the head masters of Winchester and Eton
copies of their ' Order and Use,' and they were
solemnly entered in the Mayor's book. They
were printed by Thomas Wright, the celebrated
antiquary,94 in 1853, as ' Rules of the Free School
of Saffron Walden,' and even Sir Henry Max-
well Lyte quotes them 95 as made for that school
' when Richard Cox an Etonian was master.'
But it is clear that Cox was never master there,
but being master at Eton in 1530 he furnished
Dawson with a copy of the Eton ' use.' As the
document is of the first importance in the history
of English education, it is now given in full, as
corrected from the original.
THIS vs THE ORDER OF THE SAME SCHOLE USYD BY
ME RICHARD Cox, SCHOLEMASTER.
They come to schole at vj of the Clok in ye morn-
yng & they say Deus misereatur with a Colecte ; at
ix they say De profundis & go to brekefaste. With
* Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. viii, App. 281.
M Arch, xxxiv, 37.
95 Hist. Eton Coll. (and ed. 1899), 147. Thanks
to Mr. Bryan Ackland, who enabled me to see the
original, it was shown apropos of the Winchester
' order ' that Richard Cox and John Twichencr, mis-
printed Twithen by Wright, were the masters of Eton
and Winchester respectively, who furnished the orders
of their schools to Walden as model in 1530 ; V.C.H.
Hants, ii, 298 ; and V.C.H. Essex, ii, 21. In
Etonlana, May 1907, a correct description of the
document is given, but the document itself is repro-
duced with all its mistakes from Archaeologia.
I78
SCHOOLS
in a quarter of an howre cum ageyne & tary . . . xi
& then to dyner, at T to toper afore an An theme &
De profundis.
Two Prepositores in every forme, whiche doth
give in a ichrowe the absents namys .it any lecture &
shewith when & at what tyme, both in the fore none
for the tyme paste, & at v.
Also ij Prepositon in the body of the Chirche,
ij in the qwere, flbr tpekyng of Laten in the thrcd
forme & all other, every one a custos, & in every
howse a monytor.
Whan they go home ij. and ij. in order, a monitor
to se that they do toe tyll they come at there hostise
dore.
Also prevy monyton how many the Mr wylle.
Prepositores in the feld whan they play, for fyght-
yng, rent clothes, blew eyes, or siche like.
Prepositores for yll kept hedys, unwasshid facys,
fbwle clothis & sich other.
YfF there be iiij or v in a howse, monytors for
chydyngand for Latyn ipekyng.
When any dothe come newe, the master doth inqre
fro when* he comyth, what frendys he hathe whether
there be any plage. No man gothe owte off the
schole, nother home to his frends with owt the
masters lycense. YfF there be any dullard the Mr
gyvith his frends warnyng and puttyth hjrm away that
he sclander not the Schole.
By me, Richard Cox, Scholcm'.
As regards the curriculum it is interesting to
note that when once change began in the
schools it continued. Stanbridge's Accidence and
Parvula still reigned in the lower forms. But,
in the short interval which had elapsed since the
Eton use was furnished to Cuckfteld in 1524,
for the higher grammar Whittington's gram-
mar, in consequence perhaps of his quarrel with
Horman, who was still a fellow and vice-provost
of Eton, had been deposed in favour of Lily's
grammar, which, afterwards as ' the king's
grammar ' and the ' Eton Latin Grammar '
reigned as despotically in English schools as
Donatus had done, with almost the authority of
verbal inspiration, until 1850. The pseudo-
Cato's Maralta was still the first Latin Book.
Terence, Ovid, Virgil, Sallust, Horace, Cicero,
were still the only books read by the higher
forms. As the boys still began rchool with Deut
misereatur, sang De profundit before breakfast, and
sang it again with an anthem at 5 p.m., we can
hardly say that the omission in the 'use* of any
reference to the Ave Maria and the Seven
Deadly Sins mentioned in the Cuckfield ' Form '
is due to the spirit of Reformation. But the
introduction of the Dutch Despauterius and the
German Mosellanus points to the re-importation
—
Mondays
Tewyadaye
Wedenytdaye
Thuridayt
Frydaye
Saterdaye
The ffyrat forme
Parte of Sunbrid
ge accidence ere
Tf mornjrng with
the Second, thri
d ic fowrth forme
Idem
Idem
Idem
Quoi decet in
menu at the
after none Sc ren
deryng of
Rulei
Quoi decet
in Mrnia at the after
none Render
Litynyi
Inititutionei pinrulorum Voca
hula. And aUo Latynea
The Seconde forme
ftabulae Aeiopi,
Genera Lilii
Idem
Idem
Idem
Cato | at the
after none
Cato and
at the after
Latynya fewer
tymya in the wcke
Render rnlyi
none render Litynyi and
Vulgarea
The thrid fforme
Terence
Preterita Lilii
Idem
Idem
Idem
Moit proper Hymmyi
And at the after
Propereit hymya
And at the
Latynya
none rendre rulyi
after none ren>
der Litynyi
And Vulgart
The foorthe forme
Terentiut,
Octo partea Lilii
Latynt (wiet
every weke
Idem
Idem
Idem ,
Vergilii buccolica
in the mornyng
at the after none
render rulyi
Vergilii hue
olica at after
none rendre
Litynyi It Vulgara
The fyflhe forme
Wrytyng of a
theme, Silui
tiut, Vtnifyeng
rulyi drawne
owte of dei pan
teriui other modui conic
The lame
lave they
make veriei
The lame
uve they make
nothyng
Epiitole tullii
makyng of epittlei
beiide
Saluitiui
Vergilii Eneia
in the mornyng
at the after none
rendering of rulci
lerayd the hole
weke
Vergilii Eneia
repetyng of Latyna
& Vulgan Icrnyd
that weke
ribendi epii
toln
The ayite (Forme
* the
Sevenihc forme
Horatiui or
tnlliua,
moaellanyi figure* or Copia
renim et Terborum
of Eraamui
All lyke Monday
lave they make
ver«ei
Like ai
afore
aave they
make nothyog
Epiitole
Tullii
Making of
Eplli
beiid«
Vergilii Eneia
in the mornyng
At the after none
rendryng of rulci
lernid the hole
Vergilii Eneia
repetyng of
Latyni A Vulgara
lernyd all ye
wek«
Horatiui
weke
Every quarter one fortenyght every forme rendryth all thyngi lernyd that quarter
179
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
of Lollardism in the form of Lutheranism, which
had already undermined Romanism in England.
Despauterius, or Despautier, calls himself Nini-
vita, and was master of the school of St. Ginnocus
at Bergis or Bergen-op-Zoom ; he published the
first edition of his An Ephtollca at Argentora
(i.e. Strasburg) in 1512, and a second at Antwerp
in 1529. The over-refining classification of the
schoolmen still prevails in it, letters being divided
into three classes — the descriptive, the political,
and the familiar ; while each letter is made to
comprise a salutation, a statement, a petition, and
a valediction, as if all letters were begging
letters. Mosellanus, so called because born on
the Moselle, was Peter Schade, a schoolmaster of
Leipzig. His Paedologia, Latin dialogues be-
tween schoolboys and students on their work,
their play, their poverty, and their religion, was
written when, though only twenty-five years old,
he had already been master of the school for
eight years. They are extremely entertaining,
and though only published in 1521, three years
after Luther's theses, scoff at such ceremonials as
that of Candlemas Day and the boy-bishop. On
the former Valerius asks Nicholas : ' Why have
you not a candle ? ' To which Nicholas an-
swers : ' How could I, when I have not enough
money to buy food ? If I were at home my
mother would have bought me these baubles
soon enough ! ' Valerius : ' How dare you
laugh at sacred things ? ' Nicholas : ' Why
not ? I shall not be a heretic even if I don't
carry a candle ... it would be more pleasing
to Christ if the money wasted on candles were
spent on poor relief.' As to the boy-bishop,
' What's the good of it ' — says one boy ; ' Why
none, except that you get an uncommonly good
dinner,' replies the other. Mosellanus's Flgurae
are terribly detailed excursuses on the figures of
speech written in Latin hexameters. The book
begins : —
' Arte novata aliqua dicendi forma figura est.
Sunt ejus species metaplasmus, schema, tro-
pusque ;
Schemata dant species tibi lexeos et dianeas.'
Mosellanus goes on to express scorn for his pre-
decessors who sacrificed metre to sense, but as he
only avoided the fault by interlarding his dis-
course with Romanized Grecisms, of which,
being a novelty, he was excessively proud, the
learner might perhaps think that in the new
writer he had fallen out of the frying pan into
the fire. The use of the words schema, lexeos,
and dianeas shows how Greek had already made
its way in schools. It may be noted that Mosel-
lanus's predecessor, as teacher of Greek at Leipzig,
was an Englishman and an Etonian, Richard
Crook.
The Quos decet in mensa, out of which the
boys learnt at the same time manners, morals,
and verse, was the work of Sulpicius, a grammar
schoolmaster at Rome in the 1 5th century. It
got its name from its beginning : —
' Quos decet in mensa mores servare docemus,
Virtuti ut studeas litterulisque simul.'
Good manners for the table here we tell,
To make our scholars gentlemen as well.
In elegant elegiacs are set out all the good old
nursery rules as to behaviour. Before meals you
are to wash your hands and face and clean your
teeth. At meals do not rush to your place ;
when you cough, spit or blow your nose, turn
your head away. Don't put your elbows on the
table, don't champ your jaws when eating, don't
take large mouthfuls, don't bite your bread but
cut it, don't gnaw your bones. Remember that
you eat to live and do not live to eat (' Esse
decet vivas, vivere non ut edas '). Did Sulpicius
invent this famous epigram ? In drinking, only
lift the cup with one hand, unless it is of the
kind that Theseus or Bel used to hurl at an
enemy ; don't look over it while you drink, don't
swallow too fast, or drain the pot, or whistle in
drinking. Wipe the cup. When you leave the
table, bend your knee, join your hands and say
' Prosit' for grace. There are other com-
monplaces of the manners that make man.
There was nothing new in all this except the
setting. It is found in Facetus, a pseudonym of
Johannes de Garlandia, a 13th-century writer of
a Latin-English vocabulary and a treatise on
manners, a copy of which was presented by Wil-
liam of Wykeham to Winchester College. He
is said to have been an Englishman, and his book
was frequently printed in England from 1500
onwards. No doubt it, too, descended from
immemorial antiquity.
Not the least interesting part of Richard Cox's
memorandum is that setting out the disciplinary
and domestic arrangements. Herman's Bulgaria
showed that the prefect system, the system of
self-government of boys by boys was in full
operation, the prefects being called prepostors.
There were two school prepostors ; four prepos-
tors of chapel, two in the choir, two in the body
of the church ; prepostors in the playing-fields,
to put down fighting, tearing of clothes and
giving of blue, or, as we say, black eyes ; prepos-
tors to look after dirty boys. Then there were
two prepostors in each form to give in a scroll of
those absent, and a custos in every form above
the third to see that they talked nothing but
Latin. There were separate houses, dames or
' hostise's ' houses, to which the boys had to
march two and two under a monitor ; and in
every house having more than four or five in it,
a monitor to stop chiding or wrangling and to
enforce talking Latin. Finally there were ' privy
monitors,' a sort of delators or spies, a most un-
pleasing institution in mediaeval schools, much
attacked in Mosellanus's dialogues, to report secretly
misbehaviour to the master. It would appear
180
SCHOOLS
that the prepostors were not themselves to keep
order or punish so much as to report delinquents
to the master. That the reports were not with-
out results we may gather from the character
given of Cox by Walter Haddon, already men-
tioned," in the conversation on flogging in
schools reported by Roger Ascham, which was
the occasion of his Scholemaster. The Secretary
of State, Sir William Cecil, having expressed
himself against flogging, Mr. Peters*7 had argued
that it was both necessary and useful : ' the rod
was the sword of justice of the school.' ' Then,'
writes Ascham, ' Mr. Haddon was fullie of Mr.
Peters' opinion and said " That the best schole
master of our time was the greatest beater," and
named the person. " Though," quoth I, " it
was his good fortune to send from his schole
unto the university one of the best scholers in-
deede of our time, yet wise men do thincke that
that came so to pass, rather by the great toward-
nesse of the scholer than by the great beating of
the master ; and whether this be true or no, you
yourselfe arc best witness." ' This ' best schole-
master ' and ' greatest beater ' is commonly said
to be Udal. But it is quite clear that Ascham
was referring to Haddon himself, who was solely
Cox's pupil. If Haddon had meant Udal, who
•was then dead, Ascham would not have hesitated
to give his name ; but Cox was still alive and a
bishop, and therefore for obvious reasons the
name was suppressed. The mistaken reference
to Udal was originally made by James Bennett,
* master of the Boarding-School at Hoddesdon in
Hertfordshire,' in his edition of Ascham's Works
in 1 761,** and has been blindly repeated ever
since. Udal, as will be seen, was no sparer of
the rod. But Cox must have the credit, or
otherwise, of being reputed by an old pupil the
best schoolmaster and greatest beater of his age.
It is a grievous pity that Cox did not, as his
Elizabethan successor Malim did, give a time-
table of the year as well as the week, an account
of the feasts and holidays as well as the work.
In Malim's time many of the feasts, and the
customs connected with them, which in Cox's
time before the Reformation were still fresh, are
recorded as obsolete or obsolescent. The net
result was that hard as the whole-school-days
•were, each a ten-hours' day, there were only five
or indeed four of them a week ; and there were
so many feasts that hardly a week could have
passed without at least one whole or half holiday.
For every greater feast day was a whole holiday,
and on every eve of the ' greater doubles,' feast
* Haddon, scholar of Eton, fellow of King's, after
being master of Trinity Hall, Cambridge, and presi-
dent of Magdalen College, Oxford, was now a master
of the Court of Requests and Dean of Arches.
" Peters or Pctre was a Secretary of State under
Edward and Elizabeth.
" Thi Eng/. H'orki of Rogtr Aicham (Lond. R. and
J. Dodsley, 1761), 141 n.
days on which double rations were enjoyed, there
was a partial holiday, no work being done after
dinner at 1 1 a.m. Most of the greater doubles were
the same everywhere, but certain of them varied
with the diocese, the local saints enjoying special
days. The greater doubles at Eton were I Janu-
ary, the Circumcision ; 6 January, the Epiphany ;
2 February, the Purification of the Virgin ; 25
March, the Annunciation ; then came Easter,
Whitsuntide, Corpus Christ! Day, i.e. Thursday
after Whitsuntide ; 24 June, Birth of St. John
Baptist; 29 June, St. Peter and St. Paul; I August,
St. Peter ad Vincula ; 1 5 August, the Assumption
of the Virgin ; 8 September, the Nativity of the
Virgin ; I November, All Saints' Day ; 30 No-
vember, St. Andrew's Day ; Christmas Day, and
the four following days, the last being the day of
St. Thomas the Martyr. In Lincoln diocese
there was also St. Hugh's Day, 17 November;
and at schools St. Nicholas's Day, the boy-bishop's
day. Again, Ash Wednesday was given up, not to
lessons, but to confession to the fellows or con-
ducts, each boy choosing his own confessor. On
the obit of William Wayneflete, 13 January,
every boy received id. ; on 7 February, the obit
of Provost Bost, there was a half holiday ; on
27 February, the obit of Roger Lupton, every boy
received id. and there was a holiday from dinner-
time (n a.m.) ; and on 26 May, the obit of
Henry VI, every boy had zd. In Malim's time
apparently only one memorial day of Henry VI
was observed, but previously, as at Winchester
for Wykeham, an obit was kept each quarter.
At Easter the school did not break up, though,
to judge from Winchester, there were extensive
exeats for those who could go home. For all
there was a ten-days' holiday (cessatum a put/ids
itudiis) from Wednesday in ' Holy Week,' which,
in Malim's account, means the week in which
Good Friday falls, to the Monday after Easter,
except that on ' work days ' they had writing
lessons beginning on Wednesday. Maundy
Thursday was a holiday. Those who commu-
nicated sat at table by themselves, had a better
dinner, and leave out afterwards to wander over
the fields, only they were not to go into taverns
or beer shops. On Good Friday, in Malim's
day, there was a writing lesson before 9 a.m. and
a sermon from the head master at I p.m. But
these were post-Reformation observances. On
Saturday before Easter Malim records that ' while
the custom flourished ' of the Easter Sepulchre,
three or four of the eldest boys chosen by the
master at the request of the sacrist watched
round the sepulchre with wax lights and torches,
' lest the Jews should steal the Lord,' or, as he
adds with a sceptical Protestant touch, ' more
probably to prevent any damage from negligence
in looking after the lights.' On May Day,
St. Philip and St. James, those who wished got
up at 4 a.m. to gather boughs of may ; but with
a curiously grandmotherly care, which shows a
181
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
very different spirit from that commonly imputed
to ourscholastic ancestors, the licence was coupled
with the proviso ' that they do not wet their feet.'
The windows of Long Chamber were then hung
with may and herbs. In writing verses at this
time they might write English ones on 'the
flowery sweetness of Spring time,' as long as they
included something adapted from Virgil, Ovid,
or Horace. ' St. John Lateran before the Latin
gate,' 6 May, * brings many advantages, for from
now after dinner they had a siesta in school,
until the prepostor of hall and the ostiarius " call
out " Get up " (Surgite) at 3 p.m., when they
have beavers or bever,' an interval for drinking
beer, the equivalent of the modern afternoon tea.
Malim recalls the line : ' Porta Latina pilam,
pulvinar, pocula prestat,' i.e. ' St. John Lateran's
day brings the cricket ball, the couch, the drink.'
Ascension Day began the summer holidays,
which lasted till the day before Corpus Christi
Day, the Thursday after Trinity Sunday, anyone
not present at evening chapel on that day being
flogged. On St. John the Baptist's birthday,
i.e. Midsummer Day, Malim records as extinct
the custom, which flourished no doubt under Cox,
for all the scholars to go after evening prayers to
a bonfire, made in the open space at the east end
of chapel, and then, after the choir had sung
their anthems, to a bever. On the eve of that
day the boys adorned their chambers with pic-
tures and verses on the ' life and gests of the
Forerunner,' which they wrote out with illumi-
nations and stuck at the foot of their beds. As
it was nearly nine before they went to bed, they
were allowed to lie in bed till six on the feast
itself instead of getting up at five. The same
custom was observed on 29 June, St. Peter and
St. Paul. Thecustom of the Eton and Winchester
match being always held on one of those two
feast days is perhaps ultimately due to this cus-
tom. On 7 July, the Translation of St. Thomas
(Becket), there was also a bonfire, but no verses.
The Feast of Relics in July was another whole
play day. Election time began then, and there
was a holiday if the provost or one of the posers
sent his hood into hall. On 29 August the
after-dinner siesta, and merenda or bevers, ceased.
The Nativity of the Virgin, 8 September, was a
great feast, on which day Long Chamber was
swept. On a day in September, fixed by the
master, on petition from the boys in Latin verses
on the joys of harvest and the pains of the hard
winter coming, the school went a-nutting, and
presents of the spoil were given to the master and
fellows. On All Souls Day (2 November) they
still in Malim's time said prayers in memory of
benefactors, and made vulguses (vulgaria) on
99 ' Censor Aulae et Anagnostes.' I give the Win-
chester translation of ' Anagnostes.' The ' ostiarius '
was the prefect ' in course ' for the day, who sat near
the door to supervise the going in and out of school.
Maxwell Lyte leaves the word unexplained.
immortality — substitutes for the prolonged ser-
vices and requiems of pre-Reformation days.
' On St. Hugh the bishop's day,' says Malim,
' there used at Eton to be an election of a bishop
Nicholas (episcopi Nihilensis}™ but the custom has
fallen into abeyance. Formerly the boy-bishop
was thought a noble person, and at his election a
learned and laudable exercise was celebrated at
Eton to give strength and agility to their wits.'
At Eton, as at Winchester, the boy-bishop was
directed by the statutes to perform divine service
on St. Nicholas's Day, 6 December, and not on
the usual day, that of the Holy Innocents. This
was probably to avoid clashing with the estab-
lished boy-bishop celebrations of the choristers of
the cathedral and of St. George's respectively.
At Eton, there being a chantry of St. Nicholas
already existing before the college was founded,
it is possible that the day was already in vogue
for the boy-bishop. It is noteworthy how Eton,
like other schools, as e.g. the Great Grammar
School at Lincoln, had turned an idle mummery
into a literary exercise, with verses in honour of
the boy-bishops, St. Hugh and St. Nicholas,
and also a sermon, much after the style of
the Terrae filius address at Oxford, for him to
preach. Originally mixed up with the boy-
bishop was the custom that on St. Andrew's Day
(30 November) the schoolmaster used to choose
the best and most appropriate stage plays, i.e.
plays of Terence or Plautus, ' which the boys
perform sometimes in public during the Christmas
holidays, not without the elegance of the games
(sc. of Rome), before a popular audience.'
' Sometimes,' Malim adds, ' the master exhibits a
story written in English (Anglice itrmone contex-
tas fabulas) with wit and humour.' Apparently
in Malim's day the practice was already being
attacked by Puritans, as he thought it necessary
to put in the defence that ' The actor's art is
one of no moment, but it cultivates, as nothing
else can, the action and appropriate gestures and
movements of the body necessary to orators.''
So that already at Eton the object of the school
had been developed from that of producing priests
and parsons into that of educating prospective
preachers, lawyers, and statesmen.
As we saw, plays were performed at Eton by
or under Cox. In 1533 he wrote101 a copy of
Latin verses for the coronation of Anne Boleyn..
They do credit to his Latinity, but not to his
poetical faculty, being a string of dreary plati-
tudes and fulsome compliments on her beauty,
modesty, ability, and the like. In spite of his
successful career after leaving Eton, ending as it
did in a bishopric, Cox is now forgotten, while
his successor, less successful in the world,
Nicholas Udal, has become a name of fame in all
the classrooms, as ' the father of English comedy,*
182
100 See supra, p. 164.
I01Harl. MS. 6148, fol. 117.
SCHOOLS
in his play Roister Dottier, which has been
claimed as an Eton product. Unfortunately
nearly every date connected with Udal's career
has been wrongly given, and many wrong in-
ferences have been consequently drawn. His
name itself is a notable example of the vagaries
of phonetic spelling. It was really Uvedale,
Latinized by himself into Udallus, and then
adopted by him in English as Udal. But being
apparently pronounced Oovedale or Oodal it
occurs as Woodal, Wodall, and in all the other
possible variants of that form. He was one of
the Uvedales of Hampshire, the family which
became, by marriage with the heiress of the
Scures in the latter part of the I4th century,
Lords of Wickham. He was admitted scholar
of Winchester in I5I7,10* and of Corpus Christ!,
Oxford, in June I52O,101 under the name of
Owdall. Anthony Wood asserted, and all other
writers have followed him, that he went to Corpus
at the age of fourteen. As a matter of fact, he
was at least sixteen and a half at the time. The
boy undergraduate is a somewhat mythical being.
He was paid, as Wodall, as a lecturer at Corpus
in 1526-8. With the famous antiquary, Leland,
he produced ' dites and interludes ' 103* to be per-
formed in London on the occasion of Anne
Boleyn's coronation, 31 May 1533. Leland's
contributions are all in Latin ; Udal's, which
form the chief part, arc mostly in English, the
speeches being each spoken by a 'child,' 'at
Cornhill beside Leadenhall,' ' at the Conducte in
Cornhill,' and ' at the little Conducte in Cheepe.'
Both the Latin and the English compositions are
very much superior to Cox's effusion on the same
occasion. It is very probably owing to the
success of these verses that at Midsummer 1534
he became head master of Eton. In February
1533—4. he published Floures for Latine Spekynge,
selected and gathered out of Terence and the same
translated into Englysshe. Its colophon is Londoni
in aedibui Bertheleti mdxxxiii, but the dedication
* to my most sweet flock of pupils ' is dated IM
28 February 1533-4, 'from the monastery of
the monks of the order of Augustine.' This is
an ambiguous description ; there were no monks
of that order, and whether Austin friars or
Augustinian canons were meant is open to doubt.
The book was published with laudatory Latin
verses by John Leland, the antiquary, who was
then resident in London, and by Edmund
'" Kirby, Winch. Scholars, is misleading. The original
entry runs, 'Nicholaui Owdall de Sowthampton in
parochia Sancte Crucis, xij annorum in fcsto Nativitatis
Domini preterito,' i.e. Christmas 1516. His name
luggests that he was born on 6 Dec., Bishop Nicholas's
Day.
fa Fowler, Hist. C.C.C. (Oxf. Hist. Soc.).
'"• B.M. 1 8 A, Ixiv.
IM ' Nicholas Udal suavissimo discipulorum gregi
... ex coenobio monachorum ordinis Augustini
pridie Kalendas Martias, post Natale Domini, 1534.'
Jonson. Now the latter was a Winchester and
Oxford contemporary of Udal's, a scholar of
Winchester 1514 and of New College 1520.
From 1528, and perhaps a year earlier, he was
Hoitiarius at Eton, a post which he left to be-
come master of the school of St. Anthony's
Hospital, then the most famous and flourishing
school in London. Established, as we saw, at
the same time and by the same Wykehamists
who established Eton, the master's salary was
£16 a year, with the same ' diet' or commons,
livery, and other advantages as had been
originally assigned to the master of Eton, before
the reduction consequent on partial disendow-
ment. So that St. Anthony's was probably the
best scholastic appointment in the kingdom.
Now St. Anthony's Hospital and School were in
Threadncedle Street, close to Austin Friars. So
it is highly probable that Udal was usher in St.
Anthony's School under Jonson, who was two or
three years his senior, and was living next door
to the school in Austin Friars. At all events it
is quite clear that the flock of pupils to whom
the book was dedicated were not Eton scholars,
as Udal was not then master of Eton. The sugges-
tion in the Dictionary of National Biography that
the book was dedicated to Eton boys in advance is
unlikely, as in those days they seem never to have
got their masters till the place was vacant or
on the verge of vacancy. The audit book for
25 & 26 Henry VIII, i.e. Michaelmas 1533 to
Michaelmas 1534, contains the earliest record of
Mr. Nicholas Woddal, as he is called, being paid
as Informator for the last quarter of that year,
viz. from Midsummer to Michaelmas 1534. In
later years he is called Informator puerorum (' of
the children') or ludi grammaticalis or schole
grammaticalis (' of the grammar school *). It is
not until 1537-8 that he appears as Udal.
Besides his salary of j£io and £i for livery,
Udal enjoyed the petty receipts (minutis) of
8;. 4</. for otiti, 2s. 8d. for laundress, 2s. for
candles for his chamber, and 23;. ^d. ' for ink,
candles and other things given to the grammar
school by Dr. Lupton, provost,' whose obitt as we
have seen,10* was already celebrated on 1 1
January. The boy-bishop celebration was duly
kept, 2s. being given to the man who brought
venison (ferinam) to the provost on St. Nicholas's
feast (6 December) and \d. being paid for
' a skin of parchment to write the names of the
officers of the bishop on the feast of St. Hugh,'
1 7 November, i.e. of St. Hugh of Lincoln, the
boy martyr, on whose day, as the school was in
Lincoln diocese, instead of on 6 December, the
boy-bishop seems to have been elected. At
Christmas, too, there was a payment of 1 2s. for
a boar and of 2s. 8d. ' for making the boar's
head.' There was a play, 31. being paid for the
repair of the dresses of the players at Christmas,
See tufra, p. 173.
183
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
and is. 4.d, to a servant of the Dean of Windsor
for bringing his master's clothes for the players.
The payment for repair of the players' dresses
recurs every year at this time, except in 1536-
This is to be accounted for by the boys being
away at ' Heggeley ' (? Hedgerley), probably on
account of the plague at Eton ; for 6d. was paid
for a hogshead — and gd. for the bringing of it —
'to carry drink to the boys at Heggeley,' while
payments were made to Spensar, the costs for
cleaning the boys' inn (hospitium) there, and 2s.
for keys and locks for the doors, and 2s. 6d. was
paid for bringing them, or some of them, to the
college on election day. The same year cakes
and ale (caakys et al) were provided for the Bishop
of Lincoln, and the queen, Jane Seymour, paid
a visit to the college, when not only were ' flyne
cakes' provided, but sherry (secke) and claret
(clarett) at is. ^d. a gallon each, and apples and
pears to the extent of 2s. 2d. The king came
on St. Bartholomew's Day (24 August), but
seems to have preferred beer with his ' caks.'
Udal has been credited with producing a play at
Braintree while vicar there, recorded in the
churchwardens' accounts for 1534 as a play of
' Placy Dacy alias St. Ewestacy ' i.e. ' Placidas
alias Sir Eustace.' But Udal did not become
vicar of Braintree till 27 September 1538. On
i October I538108 'Nicholas Uvedale, professor
of the liberal arts, informator and schoolmaster of
Eton,' was licensed to hold the vicarage of Brain-
tree, ' with other benefices,' without personal
residence. So it is not very probable that he ever
went to Braintree or produced any plays there.
In 1538, however, the accounts of Thomas
Cromwell,107 the Lord Privy Seal, include a pay-
ment for ' Woodall, the scholemaster of Eton,
to playing before my lord, £5.' Presumably he
brought a troupe of boys with him. In that
year also he published a second edition of his
Flowers of Terence for Eton boys.
The account of Thomas Tusser of his experi-
ence at the hands of Udal, though oft quoted, is
too picturesque not to be quoted once more.
Tusser began life as a chorister of St. Paul's.
From Powles I went to Aeton sent,
To learn straightwayes the Latin phrase ;
Where fifty three stripes given to me at once I had ;
For fault but small or none at all
It came to pass thus beat I was ;
See, Udall, see, the mercy of thee to mee, poor lad.
If Cox was a greater beater than this he must
have been great indeed. Udal's reign of the rod
at Eton was brought to an abrupt conclusion by
his being brought up before the Privy Council,108
14 March 1540-1, for 'being of counsel with'
two of the boys, Thomas Cheney, a relation of
the Lord Treasurer of the Household, and
106 Pat. 30 Hen. VIII, pt. vi, m. 17.
107 L. and P. Hen. 7111, xiv (2), 334.
108 Pnc. P.O. viii, 152.
Thomas Hoorde, for stealing some silver images
and chapel ornaments. He then confessed to a
much more scandalous offence with Cheney and
was sent to the Marshalsea Prison. He tried,
but failed, to get restored to Eton. Attempts
have been made to whitewash him. But his
own confession, and an abject letter of repentance
and promises of amendment addressed probably
to Wriothesley, a Hampshire man, and no doubt
a family friend, cannot be got over. From the
letter it would seem that he was a bad school-
master as well as an immoral one, since he puts for-
ward amongst other things 'myn honest chaunge
from vice to vertue, from prodigalitee to frugall
lyving, from negligence of teachyng to assiduitee,
from play to studie, from lightnes to gravitee.'
Unfortunately the account for 1541-2 is missing.
The last mention of Udal at Eton is in 1542—3,
when, after the bursar had ridden up to London
to the master (i.e. the provost) ' for the matter
of Udall,' Udal was paid '53*. ifd. in full satis-
faction of his salary in arrears and other things
due to him while he was teaching the children ';
but as on the other side of the account appears
an item of ' 6oj. received from Dr. Coxe for
Udall's debts,' it would not appear that any
money passed to Udal. He maintained himself
by translating in 1 542 Erasmus's Apophthegms into
English and divers other works. He seems to
have been made to resign his living at Braintree,
a successor being appointed 14 December 1544.
He purged himself, however, by composing the
Answer to the articles of the commoners of Devon-
shire and Cornwall when they rose in rebellion,
bloodily put down by the first lord of the house
of Russell in the summer of 1549, against the
First Prayer Book of Edward VI. Udal, as an
English author, evidently wrote 1M con amore
against the Cornishmen, who, because ' certen of
us understand no English, . . . utterly refusid this
new English,' demanded the old service in Latin,
and the calling in of the Bible and all other
books of Scripture in English, ' for we be in-
formed that otherwise the clergy shall not of long
time confound the heretics.' He was rewarded
by being made a canon of Windsor, 14 December
1551. On 5 January ' after the common reckoning
1552 ' (i.e. I55I-2),110 he published a translation
of Erasmus's Paraphrases of the gospels, himself
translating the first three, while St. John was
being translated by the Princess Mary, till she
fell sick and handed her work over to Dr. Malet.
The work was done at the suggestion and ex-
pense of the Dowager Queen Katharine, in
whose charge Mary was, and the connexion
with Mary afterwards stood Udal in good stead
109 Pocock, Troubles of the Prayer Book of 1 549
(Camden Soc. new ser. 37), 141, 193.
110 The publication of the second volume, done by
Miles Coverdale, in June 1552, shows that the date,
'after the common reckoning January 1552,' was
according to the modern use, i.e. 1551—2 not 1552-3.
184
SCHOOLS
In June and September 1553 nl ' Mr. Nicholas
Uvedale ' was paid at the rate of ^13 6s. 8d. a
year as ' scolemaster to Mr. Edward Courtney,
beinge within the Tower of London, by virtue
of the Kings Majesty's Warrant.' At Queen
Mary's entry into London he produced ' dities
and interludes' for which he received her thanks.
It was probably either on this occasion or at the
Christmas following that the play of Roister
Doisttr was produced. For it was in January
1553, i.e. 1554, that Thomas Wilson, master
of St. Katharine's Hospital by the Tower, pro-
duced the third edition of The Rule of Reason,
which contains, while the two earlier editions
published in 1551 and 1552 respectively do not
contain, a long quotation from Roister Doister.
It gives under the heading of ' ambiguitie,' as
' an example of such doubtful writing whiche,
by reason of poincting, maie have double sense
and contrarie meaning,' the letter ' taken out of
an intrelude made by Nicholas Vdal,' which
Ralph Roister procured a scrivener to compose
for him, asking Christian Custance, the heroine,
to marry him. Roister's emissary read it
Sweete mistrcssc, where as I love you nothing at all,
Regarding your substance and richnesse chicfe of all,
and so on ; whereas it was meant to read
Sweete mistresse, whereas I love you, (nothing at all
Regarding your substance and richnesse,) chicfe of all,
For your personage, beautie, demeanour and wit.
The play was entered at Stationers' Hall, when
printed- in 1566, and only one copy is known,
which was given to Eton by an old Etonian in
1 8 1 8. As the title-page is pone the only evi-
dence of its authorship is Wilson's quotation.
Wilson being an Etonian, it has been argued
that his quotation was a reminiscence of his
Eton days and that the play was written for and
first performed by Eton boys. But the occur-
rence of the quotation first in the edition of
1554, and its absence in the previous editions of
1551 and 1552, coupled with the facts that
there is nothing in the play to suggest any con-
nexion with boys, that the scene is laid in
London and among London citizens and is
essentially a London play — points ignored by
Maxwell Lyte (1899 edition) and the Dictionary
of National Biography — appear to furnish an irre-
sistible argument that Roister Doister first
appeared in 1553, and therefore could not have
been written at Eton or for Eton boys. On
6 March 1553-4 Udal was given by Gardiner,
Bishop of Winchester, the living of Calbourne in
the Isle of Wight. It has hitherto been alleged lu
that in 1554 he was made head master of West-
minster School, which, as is not generally known,
was founded by Henry VIII as part of the
foundation of the cathedral church of West-
111 Trereljan Paf>. (Caraden Soc. 84), ii, 31, 33.
'" Cf. Diet. Nat. Blag.
minster, on the dissolution of the abbey in 1 540 ;
the only previous school in connexion with the
abbey being an almonry or charity school in the
subalmonry of the monastery for some 24 boys,
which began with some two or three about
1356. It has been supposed that Udal was
the last master of the Cathedral Grammar School,
which he is alleged to have resigned and the
school to have been suppressed on the re-erection
of the abbey 7 September, and the return of
monks to it 21 November 1556. It is, how-
ever, now certain us* that Udal was not master in
1554, and that he did not resign but died in
office, and that the school was not suppressed
in 1556. In the will of Stephen Gardiner,
Bishop of Winchester and Lord Chancellor,
dated 8 November I555,u* there is a bequest of
40 marks (£28 13*. 4^.) 'to Nicholas Udale, my
scolemaister ; ' which is sufficient proof that
Udal was not then at Westminster. In what
sense he was Gardiner's schoolmaster it is diffi-
cult to guess. He was not head master or usher
of Winchester College. The Winchester Al-
monry School, which corresponded to that of
Westminster, came to an end with the dissolu-
tion of the monastery. The old High School,
or City Grammar School, which, under the im-
mediate control of the bishop, existed ages before
Winchester College, last appeared as a going
concern in the appointment of a master, who
bore the same name as the present dean, in
i488,11Sa and the schoolhouse was let in 1529-30
at 5/. a year. It is just possible that Gardiner
revived it and appointed Udal master. However
that may be, the Act Book of the Westminster
Chapter established by Henry VIII, among admis-
sions of petty or minor canons, scholars and
almsmen, contains the following entry : — ' Scole-
master. Mr. Udale was admitted to be scole-
master 1 6 December anno 1555.' The entry
is crossed out by a line drawn through it, prob-
ably as being considered out of place. The last
chapter order is dated 6 March 1555—6, but
leases were granted as late as 24 September 1556.
The parish register of St. Margaret's, Westmin-
ster, contains under ' Burials in December anno
Domini 1556,' ' 1 1 die Katerine Woddall.' ' 23
die Nicholas Yevedale." Whether Katherine
was Udal's wife, or some relation or not, it is
certain that Nicholas Yevedale is Nicholas Uve-
dale or Udal. For in the one and only extant
account of the cellarer of the revived monas-
tery for the year ending Michaelmas 4 and 5
Philip and Mary, i.e. 1556, under 'fees and
lu* Mr. G. Russell Barker, who has for »ome year*
been accumulating materials for the history of West-
minster School, first mentioned this. I am indebted
to the dean, the Very Rev. J. Armttagc Robinson, for
references and recourse to the abbey muniments which
prove it.
111 P.C.C. 3 Noode*. Proved 25 Jan. 1557.
'"• y.C.H. Hanti, ii, 256.
185 24
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
wages' is a payment of ' cash to Thomas Notte,
usher (hippodidasculo) of the boys, £6 I Of., and
to the scholars called grammar children (Sco/as-
ticis vocatis le Grammer ckilderri}, of £63 6s. 8d.,
showing that the school was still going on, but
that Udal's place as head master had not been
filled up. These payments are for half a year.
But next year there were a master and usher and
the full tale of scholars.
An account of John Moulton, the receiver-
general of the abbey, of payments to be made
for the last year of Philip and Mary, i.e.
I557-8,114 shows under the heading of 'fees
and wages granted to certain persons by letters
patent of the monastery for life,' to John Passey,
schoolmaster (pedagogi) of Westminster yearly,
£20, and Richard Spencer,114 usher (subpeda-
gogi) yearly, ^15, while the 'master of the
choristers' received jCiO. Under 'wages and
salaries without letters patent continued accord-
ing to the form of the foundation and erection
established by Henry VIII,' is the payment of
'40 grammar boys, £133 (>s. 8d., and 10 chor-
ister boys singing in the choir, ,£33 6s. 8dS i.e.
£3 6s. 8d. for each scholar and chorister. This
appears to be conclusive proof that Udal had a
successor, and that the school went on and was
only re-enacted, not re-established, by Queen
Elizabeth's charter refounding the collegiate
church on 21 May 1560. No doubt there were
under Udal and under his predecessors town
boys as well as the 40 scholars.
Udal's successor as head master of Eton was
' Tyndall,' according to Maxwell Lyte's list.
He was no doubt Henry Tyndall, M.A. Oxford
1516-17, and B.D. 5 June 1526. A fellow of
Merton, his stay of only a year may perhaps be
accounted for by his desire to return to Merton,
of which he was elected warden in 1544.
Smyth, who followed in 1541, was probably
Nicholas Smyth, a Buckinghamshire boy from
Fenny Stratford, scholar of Winchester 1536, of
New College 1541, B.A. 1545. He held office
with first Alphyn or Alphild as usher, and then
John Fuller, who, like himself, was of Winches-
ter (1537) and New College (1540). Smyth re-
turned to New College in 1545. He became
a fellow of Eton in 1554, and died rector of
Petworth. At Lady Day 1545 another Wyke-
hamist succeeded, Robert Cater, a Berkshire boy
from Newbury, scholar of Winchester 1526, of
New College 1 5 3 1 , M. A. 1 1 June 1 5 3 9. He was
the last representative of the mother college in the
capacity of head master of Eton. He died in
office i January 1 546-7, and was buried in Eton
Chapel with an inscription which, in view of the
false quantity in the second line and the bad
114 Westm. Abbey Mun. 33194.
II4a He was probably Richard Spenser, scholar of
Winchester, 1543, and of New College, 1549, fellow
1551-3 ; Kirby, Winchester Scholars.
scansion of the third,116 we may hope was
either not written by him, or was miscopied by
the person who recorded it. William Barker,
who filled the gap, was a demy and then fellow
of Magdalen College, Oxford. He was master
when Eton was again threatened with destruc-
tion, being included with Winchester and all the
other colleges and collegiate churches, not except-
ing the cathedrals, in the Act for the Dissolution
of Colleges and Chantries of 1545, which pro-
vided for the dissolution at the king's pleasure of
any of them to provide for the costs of the wars
with France and Scotland. The report for Eton
by the commissioners under the Act 118" is as
follows : —
ETON COLLEGE
Founded by Kynge Henry the sixte.
Robert Aldridge, Bisshop of Carlill, is proves:
there.
The seid college is a parishe churche.
The seid college is of the yerely value of
£1066 i6s. <)%J., wherof
Paide for collectours fees and rentes resolutes, and
suche other as doth appere in the Ministers accomptes,
£62 I3/. l%<t. ; paide to the provest for his stipend,
£30 ; to 7 felowes at looj. the pece, ^35 ; to 5
chaplaynes, at £4. the pece, one of theyme havynge
133. \d. more by yere, £20 i$s. ^.J.
To the Scoole Master, £10 • the vssher, £10 ; and
to 10 clerkes callid conductes, wherof one is an organe
player, £21 6s. SJ. ; in all, £121.
Paide to the vice provest, £4. ; to the chaunter,
26s. 8i/. ; to the sexten, 26s. %il. ; to the under
sexten, I3/. \d. ; to the 2 bursarres, £4. ; and to the
clerke of the londes, 53*. ^d. ; in alle, ^14.
Paide for the kepyng of 5 obbites for the founder,
and for Kinge Henry the First (sic) and Quene
Kateryne, his wife, quene Margaret, the founder's
wife, and for william waynflete, late bisshop of Wyn-
chester, £14 os. \d., .£zn 13'- 5i<^
And so Remaynyth £855 3/. \\d.
For the whiche some there is yerely borne the
diettes of the provest, vice provest, felowes, chap-
laynes, 70 scollers, 1 3 poore children and I o choris-
tours, and 5 of the provest his seruauntes, and other
seruauntes of the house, And also for liueries, and
Wages, and Reparacions and other charges, as well
ordynarie as extraordynarie.
The ornamentes or goodes apperteynynge to the
seid college be worth, as by the Inventorie therof
more playnly it may appere, £373.
Plate gilte and enamylid, poice, 314^ ounces;
plate gilte not enamyled, 1,000 ounces ; plate parcel!
gilte, 847 J ounces ; and White plate, 152^ ounces ;
Remaynynge in the handes of the Reuerend father in
God, Roberte Aldridge, Bisshop of Carlill, and provest
of the college there.
115 Grammata tradentis Cateri hie membra
quiescunt,
Quern pius adjutes precibus oro preces.
Illico mens bona quae sunt summa petat,
redivivum
Corpus ad astra volans denuo surgat :dem.
115a Leach, Engl. Schools at the Reformation, 15.
186
SCHOOLS
The provest and Felowes, with other stipendariet^ enough to obtain an exemption of the universi-
*.t___'J__fl til .1 !!*• 1 • f_
of the seid college, had by the old foundacions, for
their stipendcs as folowith, that is to saye, the provest,
£75 ; 10 felowes, euery of theym, £10, £100 ; 10
chiplayncs, euery of theym, loot., £ 50 ; the scoole
master, £16 ; the ussher, £6 I 3'. 4</. ; 10 conductes,
wherof one is an organe player, and hii stipend by
ycare, £6, to 3 others at £4 the pece, £12 ; to the
clerke of the revestre, 66s. 8</. ; the parish clerke,
66s. 8</. ; And 4 other clerkes at 40;. the pece, £% ;
in alle, £280 61. 8^.
Of the which tome, the seid college doth paye
for like stipendes at this present, u apperith be-
fore, in the tide of the Valour of the College, but
£121 ; for rewards to the vice provest and other,
£14. ; And for keping of 5 obbites, £14 01. 4^. ; in
all, £149 o/. \J. ; bicause that moche of their londes
was takyn from theym and given to Wyndisour
College by Kynge Edwarde the 4th.
It may be noted that the income of £370 in
1467 had now grown to over £1,000 a year,
yet, except for the lands given by Bost, Lupton,
and others for abiti, and the lands gained on the ex-
change for St. James's Hospital, under £100 a year
in all, the items which produced it were practi-
cally the same. But there had been a continual
' unearned increment * in the rents and profits
derived from them; a remarkable testimony to
the growth of population and of wealth under
the Tudors. The enormous amount of plate
and ornaments shows that Edward IV could not
have plundered the college of much, if of any of
it ; and, though he had taken some of the lands, he
had left it one of the richest colleges in the king-
dom, with nearly £ 1 ,000 a year, some £ 1 0,000 of
our money, richer than Winchester. Curiously
enough the same proportion applies now, Win-
chester having roughly £20,000 and Eton some
£33,000 a year, from endowments. Whether
Henry VIII ever seriously contemplated ' enter-
ing on ' the universities, with their adjuncts —
Winchester and Eton, and disendowing and dis-
establishing them, we do not know. Anyhow
he died before he had entered on more than a
dozen colleges and chantries, and the Chantries
Act, being permissive and for his life only, ex-
pired with him. But in view of the Act we
may imagine that Etonians must have warmly
welcomed the corpse of the king as it passed
through Eton on its way to Windsor, January
though it was, when ' along the churchyard wal
were the Bishop Carlisle, the Provost, in ptntifi-
ca/ibus, and al the fellows and masters in thair
best ornaments and copes ; and by them, al the
young children, Scolers of the college, in their
white surplices, bareheaded, holding in one hand
tapers and in the other bookes, saying the 7
psalms ; and as the corps came by, kneeled and
censed it, saying De profundh and other prayers.'
When the new Chantries Act, which abso-
lutely dissolved all colleges and chantries from
Easter 1 548, was passed in the first Parliament of
Edward VI, the friends of learning were strong
ties and university colleges, and as an integral
part of Oxford, Winchester, and of Cambridge,
Eton. So they, with the royal college of Windsor
and its annex, the collegiate church of Wolver-
hampton, alone of all the 200 to 250 colleges in
the kingdom, were saved from ruin. All the
endowments of the other grammar schools at-
tached to other colleges or collegiate churches
were confiscated ; and though directions were
given in the Act for the continuance and the re-
endowment of the schools, many of them disap-
peared, or most were left to languish on the net
annual income received by the master at the
time. All the other grammar schools which
were not, like Archbishop Holgate's three foun-
dations in Yorkshire, wholly independent of any
connexion with colleges, hospitals, chantries, or
gilds, shared the same fate. About half a dozen,
like Berkhampstead and Pocklington,1" were
refounded by Act of Parliament, and some thirty
were refounded and re-endowed by charter, as
King Edward the Sixth's Grammar Schools. Of
all the hundreds of grammar schools which
flourished in England before 1548, Winchester
and Eton colleges alone were left in full posses-
sion of their property, samples to posterity of
what the English schools might have been if
they had not been plundered by Edward VI and
his advisers.
Under the new regime Aldrich was soon in-
duced to resign his provostry, which he had no
business to hold with his bishopric. Thomas
Smith, though ' not priste or doctor of divinitie
or otherwise qualyfied as your statutes dothe re-
quyre,' as a letter under the Privy Seal dated on
Christmas Day 1547 informed the fellows, was
ordered to be elected provost, and on 30 Decem-
ber was duly admitted by the Bishop of Lincoln.117
The day before letters patent had authorized
him to hold the provostry with a prebend at
Lincoln and the rectory of Everington, which he
already enjoyed, and any other preferments. A
week later he was made Dean of Carlisle. All
these preferments might be and were often held
by laymen under the old regime of papal dis-
pensations ; Reginald Pole, for instance, was
Dean of Wimborne Minster at the age of fifteen.
Smith was also allowed to marry, and soon pre-
sented the first lady provost to the college. As,
however, he was made Secretary of State and
knighted, neither he nor she can have seen much
of Eton, though ' the Master,' as they called him,
had a ' new seller ' and ' a new kitchen ' built
for himself. He has been credited with the
1M V.C.H. Hertt. ii ; V.C.H. Ytrki. i.
117 Eton Audit. R. « Solutii M° Whytbye afferent!
litteras regie majestatis pro electione novi Prepositi,
tot.'; 26 Dec. 'solutis Magistro Goldwyn Vice-
Preposito et M° Willyat equitantibut ad D. Episco-
pum Lincolnienscm pro admissionc novi Prepositi,
187
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
whitewashing of the frescoes in chapel ; but
John Lecke, the porter (janitori) was in fact paid
3*. ifd. (pro dealbatlone templi) on 2 December,
when Aldridge was still provost ; and on
25 January, a month before Smith set foot in
Eton, 6s. 8d. was paid ' to those labouring about
the high altar in overturning and carrying out
the sculptures.' Next year the gold of the images
was sold for 5*. Smith's salary, instead of being
£30, as had been usual of late, was restored to
the old figure of £50, with £25 more for the
rectory. Including commons and livery for him-
self and his men, he had due to him some ,£250
in April 1550, of which he took out ^130 in
42 Ib. of old plate, at the rate of 55. zd. an
ounce Xroy weight.
Several of the fellows and Mr. Barker, the
head master, followed the provost's example, and
took unto themselves wives, which was regarded
by the conservative opposition as a heinous
offence. In 1549 117a Barker had been accused to
the provost that he was a ' diseplayare, cardeare,
riotter or gammeare, nott applying his schole
trewely.' This the vice-provost Goldwyn re-
pudiated : ' For I know he is none of that
sortt, I can fynd no faught in hym, but he
is sumwhat to gentle and gyvethe his scholars
more licence than they have byn usid ' ; a fault
•which was perhaps the best testimonial to his
virtues. On 6 May 1552 1I8 some of the
Cambridge University Commissioners, the Lord
Chancellor, the Bishop of London, Sir John
Cheekeand two others, were ordered to visit Eton
and ' see what things are to be reformed or cor-
rected there . . . and geve such injunctions as
may be for the increase of vertu and learning.'
Provost Smith was now out of favour, being a
dependant of the Protector Somerset, and had
been deprived of his secretaryship and sent to the
Tower, and the directions to the visitors included
one to ' leave owt the name of and style of the
late Duke of Somerset,' beheaded as a traitor.
The immediate result of the visit119 was 'a letter
of apparence 'on 1 1 May to one of the fellows,
Thomas Fawding or Faulding, to appear before
the Privy Council, and his committal to the
Fleet on 14 May for some unknown offence.
Reby,120 the vice-provost, was directed also to
go up to the council with " Harland " the usher
and one Avise fellow.' The result does not
appear. Thomas Harland was rather an inter-
esting person. An Etonian and Kingsman, he had
been usher since 1542. Anthony Wood says that
•under Mary he had to conceal himself under the
name of Fuller. But he appears under the
name of Fuller in the Eton audit books, and
Edward Harland alias Fuller, perhaps his father,
appears in the same books as constable of Wind-
ma S.P. Dom. Edw. VI, vii, 4.
118 Acts ofP.C. 1552-4, p. 35. "9 Ibid. 44, 46.
1M This name has been misread by the editor. His
•name was Ryby.
sor about this time. So that he seems to have
gone indifferently under either name. The
later audit books of Edward Viand those of Mary
appear to be missing. But we know from the
sole brass remaining in Fotheringhay Church,121
the college of which, like the castle, had been a
Yorkist foundation, on which some Latin verses
record the praise of Thomas Harland Paedotnba
bonus, who died 5 January 1589-90, that he was
' scholemaster ' of the grammar school there for
thirty-three years, and must therefore have gone
there in 1557.
When the Court was at Windsor, the Privy
Council on 26 September 1552 121a 'ended a
matter at Eton College between the Master and
the Fellows,' and also ' took order for the amend-
ment of certain superstitious statutes.' Next
year the college was ordered to convert their
church goods ' from monumentes of superstition
to necessarye uses,' which took the form of silver
wine-pots, jugs, bowls, and other ' plate for the
buttarie.'
After Mary's accession Thomas Smith re-
signed the provostry and the deanery of Carlisle
' quasi-spontaneously.' Henry Cole, of Godshill,
Isle of Wight, scholar of Winchester 1519 and
of New College 1521, and warden of the latter
college from 1542 to 1551, when, being adverse
to the Reformation,122 he resigned both the
wardenship and the rectory of Newton Long-
ville, was, in accordance with a royal mandate,
elected fellow of Eton and provost on the same
day, 13 July 1554. He restored the old services
and, as far as possible, the old ornaments. One
of the disputants against Cranmer and Ridley
with a view to their conviction as heretics, he
preached at the former's burning, and was re-
warded with the deanery of St. Paul's in 1556.
He was also made vicar-general to Cardinal Pole.
Three old Etonians and Kingsmen were burnt
for heresy by his party, viz. Robert Glover and
Lawrence Saunders at Coventry, and John Hul-
lier at Cambridge. Cole did not shrink from
upholding his reactionary views when Elizabeth
came in, and, though committed to the Tower,
led a disputation against Protestantism in West-
minster Abbey in 1559. On 20 May 1560 he
was deprived of his provostry and other prefer-
ments ; he was afterwards sent to the Fleet, and
was still a prisoner there in 1579.
The return to Protestantism was enforced by
a University Commission, 20 June 1559, to
tender the oaths of allegiance and supremacy at
Eton, as a college forming part of Cambridge
University. Probably by the influence of Cecil,
one of the commissioners, a Johnian, William
111 V.C.H. Northants, ii.
"Ia Maxwell Lyte, op. cit. 139, from Burnet, Hist.
of Reformation, v, 85.
1!J Not, as Anthony Wood {Atben. Oxon, i, 1 97)
says, on the authority of Bishop Jewell's biographer,
' a preacher up of the Reformation.'
188
SCHOOLS
Bill of St. John's College, Cambridge, was on
25 June elected provost at the queen's command,
as is evidenced by a payment to a messenger, who
' brought the quenes majestie's letters.' Master
first of St. John's and then of Trinity, Cambridge,
whence he was ejected by Mary, he had been
restored to Trinity, and in 1560 was made Dean
of Westminster, holding all these offices together.
He died a year later, IO July 1561. At Eton
he replaced the altar by a communion table on
9 November, and had the beautiful but ' super-
stitious* pictures painted in 1480 whitewashed
by the college barber, so preserving them for re-
discovery in 184.8.
The next head master, William Malim, is a
man of some fame, by reason of an account of
the school in his time which was, until the dis-
covery of the two curricula of 1524 and 1530,
given above, the earliest known. He was an
Etonian who was admitted to King's 14 August
1548. The roll of the year was headed by a
man who was even more famous in the scholastic
profession, Richard Mulcaster, afterwards sur-
master of St. Paul's and head master of Merchant
Taylors' Schools, and author of The Elemtntarie,
a plea for the use of the English language instead
of Latin as the medium of instruction. Malim
is said m to have been born in 1533, but that
is impossible. Eton scholars were not super-
annuated for King's till they had reached their
nineteenth birthday, and competition was too
keen for boys of fifteen to have a chance. He
must have been born at earliest in 1530. He be-
came B.A. in 1553, M.A. 1556. He became
a jurist fellow124 14 January 1559, and the in-
adequacy of the emoluments and prospects of the
civil law drove him, like many other jurist fellows
of King's and New College, to schoolmastering.
He therefore sought and obtained the succession
to Barker as head master of Eton. Among his
earliest works at Eton was the preparation of the
salvo of Latin verses, the burden of which was
mostly an invitation to marry and produce an
heir to the throne as quickly as possible, with
which he and 44 boys greeted the queen on New
Year's Day 1559-60. His time at Eton is
noteworthy for three several documents of great
importance in the history not only of Eton, but
of education in general. They are the school
bills in 1560 of the two brothers Cavendish, one
of whom became the first Earl of Devonshire ; the
fetus Consuetudinarium of Eton in 1561 ; and
Roger Ascham's Scho/emaiter, the writing of
which was suggested by a flogging scandal in
1 563. The school bills m are extremely inter-
esting. The two boys, Henry and William
'" Diet. Nat. Bug. ; J. H. Lnpton.
114 This icems to be the explanation of the state-
ment in Diet. Nat. Biog. that be was ' ordered to study
civil law.'
m Printed in the Retrotpeclivt Review (1828) and
in Etonians (Mar. and Sept. 1904).
Cavendish, just under nine and ten years old
when sent to Eton, were the sons of Sir William
Cavendish of Chatsworth, who rose to wealth
and note as Wolsey's steward and had died in
1557, and of the famous Bess of Hard wick, who
for her third husband married the Earl of Shrews-
bury, but was now married to Sir William St.
Loe, captain of the guard. At their entry St.
Loe wrote to his wife, ' The Amnar M saluteth
the, and sayeth no jenttlemen's chyldren in Ing-
land shalbe better welcum, nor better loked unto
than owre boyes.' The bills begin with an
introductory dinner ' at the inne* on 21 October
1560, at which two sons of 'Sir Frauncis Knolles*
were present. It cost a penny under half a crown
for bread and beer, soup, boiled mutton, roast
mutton, 'a lytull chicken \d. and 4^. for fire
morning and evening in their chamber there.'
On 23 October the boys 'with ther man, dyd
beginne thcr bord at Richard Hylles,' at lew. a
week for the two boys and 3*. 4^. a week for
their man, besides firewood, which for a month
cost 9s. Sd. Their whole outfit is given. It
shows that oppidans, as well as collegers, wore
gowns. The gowns, 4 yds. each of black frieze
(fryse) at if. 8<£ a yard, cost 131. \d. and making
u. 4</. Two 'friseardo coates' and two ' dub-
letts' of jane fustian, with black silk buttons,
kersey hose lined with linen, ' sloppes ' lined with
cotton, were provided ; and four shirts each of
fine holland, with coarse holland lining for the
collars. Two ' combes ' cost -id. ; two pairs of
shoes (showes) 1 6d., and soleing the old ones,
<)d. ; a ' payr of knyffes ' 6d., and ' two payr of
furred gloves with strynges at them ' $d. They
had for 6d. an initiatory ' braykfast for the cum-
panye of formes in the scole, according to the use
of the scole,' the ' company ' probably being that
of the two forms in which the boys were placed.
Their arma scha/astica consisted of ' Lucian's
Dialogues, 4</.' ; 'the Kynges Grammar, Marcus
Tullius' Offices, Fabulae ./Esopi, and 2 bokcs
of waxlight ' ; but as the books were ' sent by Mr.
Fletwood,' their prices are unfortunately not
given. An ' Isope Fabulls,' perhaps in English,
added in the following month cost i^d. ' Two
qucre of why te paper' cost 8</., and 'ij pennsand
cornetts,' or ink-horns, cost lod. 'Geven to a
man to see bayre bayting, and a camcll in the
colledge as other schollers did.'
On 25 November the boys and their servant
left 'oste Hyll,' and 'did bcgon ther bord in the
colledge.' In other words they became commen-
sals or commoners in college, as two of the 2O
' sons of noblemen or special friends of the college."
For this they paid £3 1 21. a quarter, or 3*. a week
each, while their man's board for a month was
23*. They also paid quarterage ' quarterydgc,
'" Almoner : the fellow charged in the old dayt
with the distribution of the broken meat! and alms of
the college.
189
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
in penne and inke, brome and byrche 6d,' i.e. T,d.
each ; while in the summer quarter, on 24 June,
' quarterydge, viz. byrch, brome and potacio 12'
also lyght,' cost icd., -id. a week extra being
charged for ' bever,' the afternoon drink of beer.
On 1 5 December they had ' 2 pond candell 6^.'
and 21 December '2 say gyrdells 4*/.' Each
quarter they had new shoes and a quire of white
paper. ' My lytel masters wesheng for the same
quarter,' i.e. that ending 24 June, was 2s. $d.
Two ' bunches of wax lights ' on 20 October
cost id. The only directly scholastic item is
' a Tullius Attycum for Mr. Wm.' at $d. The
whole bill for a year and a month for the two
was £25 is. 5^., or about £12 10s. each,
which, to give a commensurate value now, must
be multiplied by between 12 and 20, i.e.
£150 to £250 a year. So that a public school
education, at a boarding school, was no less a
luxury of the rich then than now.
When Provost Bill died in 1561 the fellows
audaciously elected, without awaiting a royal
mandate, Richard Bruerne, an Etonian and
Kingsman, ' an excellent Hebraist,' but a Roman-
izer, and expelled from the Regius Professorship
of Hebrew at Oxford for scandalous immorality.
The consequence was a visitation by Archbishop
Parker and the commissioners, on 9 September
1561. The immediate result was that the pro-
vost resigned, and was allowed jC i o for costs ;
while three fellows were removed for non-
appearance, and a fourth for refusing the oath of
supremacy. William Day, an Etonian and
Kingsman, was soon after made provost. But
the most interesting product of the commission
was the Custumal (consuetudinarium) 128 of Eton
school, apparently prepared by Malim, the new
head master, for the information of the visitors.
The curriculum has the advantage over the
earlier ones given above in being, not only a
school, but a whole day time-table, with an
account of all holidays and holydays throughout
the year, which last we have already discussed.
The day began at 5 a.m., when, by custom
imported from Winchester and made statutable
on the foundation of Westminster two years
after this, the wretched boys were got up by
one of the four chamber prepostors intoning
' Surgite.' ' Thereupon they all get up at once ;
pouring out their prayers while they dress, each
one in his turn beginning and the others all
together following with the next verse. Prayers
finished, they make their beds. Each one puts
any dust or dirt from under his bed in the middle
of the chamber at various places ; and it is then
swept into a heap and carried away by four boys
117 Printed ' potaticio ' ; ud quaere.
188 Preserved among the Parker MSS. at C.C.C.
Camb. No. 118, 477—89. Printed in Etoniana,
6 Dec. 1905, from the original. It was previously
known from ai inaccurate transcript by Baker in
B.M. Sloane MS. 4840.
named by the prepostor for the purpose. Then
two by two in a long line they go down to wash
their hands.' The conduit at which they washed
was the 'children's pump' in the open air,
though probably, as at Winchester, it used to be
under some sort of roof. Coming back from
washing they go into school, and each takes his
place.
At 6 a.m. enter the usher. He begins prayers
at the upper end of the school. Prayers fin-
ished, he goes to the first or lowest class, and
hears their repetition of the part of speech and
the verb which had been given them to conjugate
the day before. He goes through all the forms
up to the IVth, ' which sits in the usher's part
till 7 a.m. so as to get explanations of anything
obscure.' Meanwhile one of the two prepostors
of school gets from the prepostor of each form
the names of those absent from prayers, while
the other prepostor, who in Cox's account was
called the prepostor of the dirty (prepostor im-
mundorum), examines the hands and face of each
to see that they had washed, and presents them
to the schoolmaster on his entrance. This took
place at 7 a.m., when the IVth form went into
the master's end of the school. The prepostor
of school hands to him the names of all those
then absent, and also to him and the usher the
names of those absent in their respective forms
the evening before. Then all the classes (the
word ordo is used indiscriminately with classis for
a form) say their repetition, beginning with the
custos or lowest boy. That boy is made custos, it
is explained, for the week, ' who talks English,
or cannot say any rule he has learnt without
more than three mistakes, or has made three
mistakes in spelling in his exercises.' At 8 a.m.
the schoolmaster gives out a sentence to the
IVth form to translate, to the Vth form to vary
it (' varyings ' were done at Winchester till
1860), to the Vlth and Vllth to turn into verse.
The usher also gives out a sentence for forms
III and II to translate, but a very short one.
' Vulgars ' (Herman's Vulgand) are written out
then, to be said by heart next day. At 9 a.m.
the custos of each form recites by heart and ex-
pounds the lesson (lectionem] of the form next
below, the schoolmaster and usher going over it
again (prelegit) to their respective forms. On
Mondays and Wednesdays the four upper forms
write a theme in prose on a subject set them,,
while each boy in the three lower forms sets a
sentence to himself and translates it. On Tuesday
and Thursday this is done in verse by the upper
forms, the two lower forms writing the theme in
prose. The schoolmaster lectures (prelegit] on Mon-
day and Tuesday to VI and VII on Caesar's Com-
mentaries or Cicero's Offices, to V on Justin or Cicero
on Friendship, or other authors at discretion, and to
IV on Terence ; on Wednesday and Thursday
to VI and VII on Vergil, to V on Ovid's Meta-
morphoses, and to IV on Ovid's Tristia. The
190
SCHOOLS
usher lectures on Monday and Thursday to III
and II on Terence, and to I on Vives ; on
Wednesday and Thursday to III on Sturmius'
Select Ephtlet of Cicero, to II on Lucian's Dia-
logues, and to I on Lewis Vives.
At each lecture the boys take down ' flowers
of speech ' (a reminiscence of Udal) and idioms,
also antitheses, epithets, synonyms, proverbs,
similes, comparisons, anecdotes, descriptions of
seasons, places, persons, fables, sayings, figures
and apophthegms.
At 9 the masters go out of school. The hour
to 10 o'clock was presumably spent on the theme
and notes of lectures. At IO the prepostor of
school shouts, 'Get up for prayers.' Standing
on either side of school, they follow the words
of a leader named by the prepostor. Then two
and two they go to Hall ; and dinner over, re-
turn to school in the same order. At 12 the
usher comes back and hears IV, who are under
him till I o'clock, repeat what the master had read
them before dinner. At I p.m. form IV return
to their own place. The master returns at
i p.m., and from I to 3 p.m. examines VII and
VI on the lecture, and makes ' Vulgars ' out of it
to exercise them in Latin ; but always at 2.30
the themes are handed to and looked over by
the master. The usher is similarly employed.
From 3 to 4 the masters are out of school. At
4 the forms say (reddunt) to the master what has
been set them on the request of a prepostor, viz.,
VII and VI, Greek grammar, and V, Valerius
Maximus, Lucius Florus, Cicero's Epistles, or
Susimbrotus. The usher looks over the themes
of III, and the sentences of II. Grammar rules
and ' Vulgars ' are said over, ' that the grammar
rules may be better understood and the Latin
tongue be thoroughly familiar.'
At 5 the boys go to Hall and return as before.
At 6 those of form VII who have been told
off to teach the rest of the forms begin their
work, and exercise their charges in explaining the
lessons and turning English into Latin. Also
they recite and correct the dictations given out
by the masters. The prepostor of each form
does this, so that the schoolmasters may remark
on all to their proficiency in learning and be-
haviour.
At 7 p.m. they go [to Hall] to drink (patum,
probably supper). On coming back they exer-
cise themselves as in the hour from 6 to 7,
except at certain times of the year, when, at the
discretion of the master and by custom, they
play. At 8 they go to bed, after saying their
prayers.
Friday and Saturday are separately treated.
Friday here, as elsewhere, was the day of woe.
'After lecture* (i.e. about 9.30) 'those who have
committed any grave crime are tried, they call it
"corrections," and pay the penalty worthy of
malefactors.' The masters do no prelection
before dinner. From I to 3 they examine on
the prelections of the week, and at 4 hear the
renderings of the exercises done between 4 and
5 p.m. during the week. Before 5 the master
lectures to VII and VI on Lucan or some other,
to V on Horace, and to IV on Apophthegm* [of
Erasmus], Martial's Epigrams, Catullus, or Thomas
More ; and the usher to III and II on &sop's
Fables, and to I on Cato [MoraKa\.
Saturday was entirely given up to repetition.
At 7 they ' render ' the lectures of Friday.
' Varyings ' are given up. From 9 to I the
masters are out of school ; later they hear repeti-
tions of ' dictata.' Themes are given in. Then
Declamations are held on a given theme by boys
named for the week, who speak against each
other.
Malim's time-table may be thus summarized : —
5 a.m. Surgitt. Prayers. Make beds. Wash.
6 a.m. School Usher enters. Prayers.
Repetition.
7 a.m. H.M. enters. Repetition.
8 a.m. Subjects for varyings given out.
9 a.m. Lecture expounded by custos of each
form, and then by masters.
10 a.m. Prtcei.
10-12 a.m. Hall.
12 a.m. School. Usher enters.
i p.m. Master enters.
3 p.m. Both masters exeunt.
4 p.m. Masters return.
5 p.m. Bever.
6 p.m. Exposition by pupil teachers.
7 p.m. Supper.
8 p.m. Bed.
j
I
The whole school-day was thus a nine-hours'
day.
One of the once most celebrated of Eton cus-
toms, now defunct, is related by Malim at length
and with evident relish — that of ' Montem.'
About the Conversion of St. Paul (25 January), on
a day selected by the master, in the same way in
which they go gathering nuts in September, the boys
go to Salt Hill (ad montem). The Hill is a sacred
place in the school religion of Eton. This they make
a holy see of Apollo and the Muses and celebrate in
verses for the beauty of the cornfields, the pleasant-
ness of the grassy meadows, its tempered shades [not
much in request at the end of January !], the concert
of singing birds. Tempe they call it and prefer it
above Helicon. Here the novices or freshmen
(rtcentei) who have not yet stood up in the Eton
ranks to the lash like men for a year, are first anointed
with salt and then characterized in verses, with as
much salt and humour as possible. Then they make
epigrams on the freshmen, each trying to beat the
other in eloquence and wit. They can say whatever
comes into their mouths, as long as it is in Latin, witty
and not obscene. At the end they dip their face and
checks in salt tears, and are then initiated into all the
rites of veterans. Ovations and triumphs as of a
general follow ; and they are really pleased both at
having passed through the ordeal, and at being en-
rolled in the company of such witty fellow-soldiers.
191
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
It is strange that none of the Eton historians
have noticed that the origin of ' Montem ' is to
be found in ' Hills ' at Winchester ; but what at
Winchester was a living and daily habit up to 1850
at least, had at Eton, by the days of Elizabeth,
already sunk into an annual ceremonial, with the
usual mediaeval initiation of freshmen, conducted
with salt water, much as the initiation of those who
first cross the line is conducted on ship-board to-
day. ' Hills ' at Winchester is St. Katharine's
Hill, a rounded peninsular hill, where the long
line of the chalk downs is broken off by the
water meadows of the Itchen. It is a grassy
hill some 300 ft. high, with a treble circumvalla-
tion round it near the top, and is now crowned
with a clump of beech and fir trees, said to have
been planted just before 1778 ; but that this
clump was no new thing, is shown by a picture
of the college in a book composed about 1460.
No contemporary account of what the boys
did on Hills is forthcoming until a century later,
in 1564, when Christopher Johnson, the head
master, in a ' theme ' preserved by one of his pupils,
complained of boys who ' shirk Hills in playtime
(' a montibus abesse aliquos cum luditur'), school
in school time, chapel in service time, and, still
worse, play in school, idle on Hills, and are noisy
in chapel.' Till 1850 or thereabouts, on the
morning of every whole school day, the whole
school marched two and two to the top of this
hill, where they broke rank and played games
according to the season, returning to college
when Domum was called by juniors told off for
the purpose, who circled the hill, shouting the
word till they met at Domum Cross. From
about 1850 to 1868 'Hills' had become bi-
weekly in the afternoon in winter and in the
evening in summer, and the boys stopped at the
bottom, not the top. It is now a function held
twice a year before breakfast at the beginning of
the Short Half, the winter, and Cloister Time, the
summer term. The origin of the daily walk to
' Hills ' was perhaps religious, as there was at one
time a chapel of St. Katharine at the top, and in
1331 it is recorded that the prior of the cathedral
monastery received 'all oblations in the chapel of
St. Katharine on her feast (25 November), as well
by day as by night, and the station in it, and the
custody of the same from vespers on St. Katharine's
Eve to nightfall on the day after the feast.' Seeing
how closely Eton followed Winchester, the in-
ference is irresistible that Salt Hill had been
selected as the nearest, though certainly a very
inferior, substitute at Eton for St. Katharine's
Hill at Winchester, and that Eton boys had in
old times regularly resorted there to play. But
by the time of Henry VIII the ' playing-leasowe,'
the nearer part of the present playing-fields, was
used as a playground, and was so much more
convenient that the daily march ad montem had
been superseded. But for the sake of old custom,
and perhaps in connexion with the ending of the
boy-bishop's reign, which at York, and no doubt
elsewhere, lasted till the end of January, an
annual march was celebrated in its place. The
fact that ' Hills ' at Winchester now only survives
much in the same way as ' Montem ' survived at
Eton in Elizabeth's day, viz. in a march out of
the whole school at the beginning of the sum-
mer and autumn terms, in memoriam, greatly
strengthens the argument for attributing the
origin of ' Montem ' to an imitation of ' Hills.'
By the i8th century the Eton ' Montem ' had
ceased to be a solemn initiatory ceremony with
literary exercises, and had come to be a sham
military march, the military element having been
suggested probably by Malim's use of military
metaphors in his account of it. In 1712 salt
was given, not to the boys, but to the passer-by,
who was made to pay for it, and the money
collected was given to the captain of college, to
furnish him forth for King's.
When boys at Eton once a year
In military pomp appear,
He who just trembled at the rod
Treads it a heroe, stalks a god,
And in an instant can create
A dozen officers of state.
His little legion all assail,
Arrest without release or bail ;
Each passing traveller must halt,
Must pay the tax and eat the salt.
' You don't love salt ' you say, and storm :
' Look o' these staves, sir, and conform.'
By the middle of the 1 8th century ' Montem '
had further sunk into a triennial performance. In
1759 the day was changed to the Tuesday in
Whitsun week, thus transforming what was the
end of the winter ' saturnalia ' into a summer
show. The dresses became more and more
gorgeous, the collections larger and larger. The
salt was exchanged for tickets bestowed on those
who had been mulcted. George III was regu-
larly present at it, and it became a fashion-
able spectacle. In 1784 £451 was collected,
and the captain cleared ,£246 ; in 1841 ^1,269
was raised, and the net profit was some £800.
At that time an orgy at the public-house by
Salt Hill was followed by a foray on the garden,
cabbages and rose trees falling victims to the
swords of the officers. The opening of the
Great Western Railway in 1841 effectually
vulgarized the spectacle and demoralized the
boys ; and in 1847 ' Montem ' was abolished, the
head master, Dr. Hawtrey, giving £200 to the
captain of college in compensation for loss of
perquisites.
In spite of the humorous turn which Malim
gives to his account of Eton customs, he seems
to have been as harsh a disciplinarian as any of
his predecessors ; for it was his flogging which
drove some boys to run away from Eton, and
thereby gave occasion to one of the earliest
192
SCHOOLS
English classics on education, Roger Ascham's
Scholemaiter.
' When the great plage was at London, the
yeare 1563, the Quenes Maiestie, Queene
Elizabeth, lay at her Castle of Windsore, where,
vpon the 10 day of December, it fortuned, that
in Sir William Cicellf chamber, hir Highnesse
Principall Secretarie, there dined togithcr ' a select
company, of whom Roger Ascham was one.
Not long after our sitting doune, I haue strange
newes brought me, sayth Mr. Secretarie, this morning,
that diuerse Scholers of Eaton, be runne awaie from
the Schole, for feare of beating. Whereupon, Mr.
Secretarie tooke occasion, to wishe, that some more
discretion were in many Scholemasters, in vsing
correction, than commonlie there is. Who many
times, punishe rather, the weakenes of nature, than the
fault of the Scholer. Wherby, many Scholers, that
might else proue well, be driuen to hate learning,
before they knowe what learning meaneth.
Thereupon followed the discussion, which
eventually produced the work in question, which
for the first time in English preached openly and
at length the doctrine that persuasion was better
than force for opening a boy's mind to learning.
The book itself sheds no further light on the
method of Eton or any other school. Just as
much as the most hide-bound public-school
master, Ascham treats a knowledge of the
classics as the be-all and end-all of education,
while his new patent method of inoculating
pupils with them, though practicable enough for
the single willing pupil, with whom alone, as
private tutor, Ascham's experience had lain, was
wholly unpractical for a large public school.
Even his courageous attack on Solomon's stupid
dictum as to sparing the rod and spoiling the
child had little practical effect at Eton or else-
where.
The running away of the boys, which pro-
duced the Scholemaiter, also produced the retire-
ment of Malim from office, as in 1563 William
Smyth became head master.158 Malim was on
3 April 1569 partly consoled with the prebend
of Biggleswade in Lincoln Cathedral. At
Christmas 1573 he became high master of St.
Paul's. In 1580 he humbly asked Cecil, then
Lord Burghley, for preferment, but seemingly
the incident of 1563 had been too much im-
pressed on the Lord Treasurer's mind. At all
events, Malim did not get preferment. Next year
he retired from St. Paul's, and died 15 August
1594. His successor at Eton, Smyth, had gone
to King's in 1556 in the same batch with Wil-
liam Wickham, afterwards vice-provost of Eton
and Dean and Bishop of Lincoln, and the second
Bishop of Winchester of that name. Smyth
was, when elected master, a fellow of Eton, and
with his namesake, Clement Smythe, a master
'" Lupton in Diet. Nat. Biog. makes him stay at
Eton till his election to St. Paul's in 1573. The Eton
Audit Book for 1563-4 refutes this.
exactly a century before, the first, and perhaps
the only one, to reverse the usual process by
giving up a fellowship to become master, instead
of being given a fellowship on ceasing to be
master. No doubt he was pressed to fill the
gap caused by Malim's sudden retirement. After
eight years of office, however, he adopted the
usual course, and, on resigning, was re-elected
a fellow. He afterwards became ' viker ' of Stur-
minster Marshall, Dorset, an Eton living, and
preacher or minister at Wimborne Minster, near
Bournemouth, where there is a monumental in-
scription to him. It is to be hoped that he was
not responsible for the vandalism which disposed
of 'old parchment books wcying 200 pounde '
for 241. in 1564-5. He kept up the play, re-
ceiving 2OJ. for ' Mr. Schoolmaster's charges
about the playe last Christmas,' while lolb. of
candles ' spent at the play ' cost 1 5^., and ' tcnter-
hookes,' presumably for the curtain, cost iSd.
From Malim's time to the Civil War most of
the head masters, if not all, were Etonians and
Kingsmen. Reuben Sherwood (King's 1558),
proctor at Cambridge 1569, head master 1 57 1-9,
was a medical man, and afterwards practised as a
physician at Bath ; Thomas Ridley (King's 1565),
head master i 579-83, was a lawyer, and became
a master in Chancery and a knight. The name
of John Hammond, head master 1583-94, does
not appear in Alumni Etonensei as going to King's.
He was a married man, and a monument to his
son, who died at Eton in I 589, records that when
the boy was scarcely three years old he could
understand and talk Latin. Hammond nK<>
retired to practise physic, receiving as a retiring
gratuity in 1594 £40 in lieu of a lease of Eton
property asked for by the queen on his behalf.
He became a court physician and died in 1617.
Richard Langley (King's 1580) succeeded in
1594.
Provost Day was made Bishop of Winchester
in 1595, but died within a year. His successor
at Eton, Sir Henry Savile, who had held the
wardenship of Merton since 1584, and continued
to hold it, was elected on 26 May in pursuance
of royal letters of 18 May 1596, for which he
offered Sir Robert Cecil 300 angels. He was an
ex-tutor of Queen Elizabeth in Greek and
mathematics, and ' an extraordinary handsome
and beautiful man — no lady had a finer com-
plexion.' He was a scholar of European
reputation. At Eton he converted the Fellows'
Library from a hay-loft and set up a printing
press in what was during the iQth century the
head master's house, to print a great edition of
Chrysostom. He is said to have been a stern
disciplinarian and to have discouraged youthful
brilliance ; ' Give me the plodding students. If
I would look for wits, I would go to Newgate —
there be wits.'
The reputation he and Langley enjoyed
caused the school to grow. In 1613 there were
193
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
loo candidates for election to college, and in
1615 the commensals' tables in hall had to be
enlarged. Con O'Neil, son of the Earl of
Tyrone, held a hostage for his father, was sent
there by the Government in 1616. It cost him
£90 a year, but he had two or three servants.
Young Lord Wriothesley and a page paid about
I if. a week or some £60 a year. Ordinary
commensals paid 31. 6d. and 5*. 8d. a week,
according as they commoned as scholars or as
fellow commoners. Barlow, the Bishop of
Lincoln, as diocesan, attacked Langley, ' who,
having 2 rich benefices (as I am informed) farr
distant from his schole, and beeing a Doctor of
Divinity, continueth the teaching of children, and
neglecteth his principall charges, which are the
souls of his people.' Savile defended him, where-
upon Barlow replied that he thought no one
could sink so low ' as from an interpreter of the
Holy Ghost to become an expositor of profane
facts.' At length in 1611 he was forced to
resign. Langley died a canon of Windsor in
1615. Savile promoted the usher, Richard
Wright, fellow of Merton, to the vacant post.
Barlow attacked him for being a priest, describ-
ing it as ' a gross abusing of our sacred function
that a Priest should either bee or bee entituled an
kostiarius.' The real gravamen seems to have
been that he was not an Etonian. Savile yielded,
got Wright elected a fellow, and put in two
Kingsmen, Matthew Bust as master and William
Otes as usher.
On Savile's death in 1622 an impecunious
Scotsman, ' neither English, graduate or priest,'
Thomas Murray, became provost, but died next
year. A crowd of candidates then came for-
ward, including the great Bacon, then Lord
St. Albans. The place remained vacant until
the all-powerful favourite, the Duke of Bucking-
ham, returned from Spain, when it was given to
Sir Henry Wotton, who had just been recalled
from being ambassador at Venice. In that post
he had never got over his famous mot that an
ambassador was 'an honest man sent to lie
abroad for the good of his country ' ; which,
reported in Latin, in which the pun disappeared,
was misrepresented as a piece of Jesuitry. He
was the last Wykehamist, being a commoner of
Winchester and New College, to preside over
the destinies of the daughter college. Wotton,
though a layman and statutably ineligible, was
given the place as a convenient way of paying
arrears due to him as ambassador. He gave to
Eton the great picture of contemporary Venice
which hangs in Election Hall. He is also said 13°
to have set up the row of wooden pillars in
Lower School, 'on which he caused to be choicely
drawn the pictures of divers of the most famous
Greek and Latin historians, poets and orators,
persuading them not to neglect rhetorick. . .
None despised eloquence but such dull souls as
were not capable of it.' The pillars, however,
could only have been recased at most, for men-
tion is made of them in 1514-15, when Will
Edmunds was paid £i 'according to agreement
for the pillars (postibus) in school.' There had no
doubt been 'posts,' as the existing posts in chambers
and the old school at Winchester are still called, in
the old school at Eton. It would almost seem
that the provost of this time took part in teach-
ing, for Izaak Walton continues : ' He would
often make choice of some observations out of
these historians and poets ; and would never
leave the schole without dropping some choyce
Greek or Latin apopthegme or sentence, such as
were worthy of a room in the memory of a
growing scholar.'
The school flourished under Provost Wotton,
Matthew Bust, and his successor as master, John
Harrison. It was ' very much thronged with
young nobility.' Robert Boyle, ' the father of
chemistry and uncle of the Earl of Cork,' was
sent there with his brother in 1635 at the age
of eight, and placed specially under the protec-
tion of Wotton, because Wotton was ' not only
a fine gentleman, but very well skilled in the art
of making other so.' Harrison, the master,
' would often dispense with him from school to
instruct him privately and familiarly in his
chamber.' It was well to be a magnate in those
days. Among Boyle's contemporaries were the
sons of the Earls of Peterborough, Northampton,
and Westmorland. The scholars were largely
nominees of the court, sometimes nominated by
the Secretary of State, sometimes by the king
himself. Thus, 25 July i624,m the king him-
self wrote to the provost recommending ' Robert
Newman as a scholar of Eton, an exception
having been taken to a former recommendation
as not being under his own hand,' the former
one being by Secretary Conway on 8 July 1623.
Newman was duly elected and went on to
King's in 1628. A curious mixture of classes
was nominated : in 1624 the sons of 'one of
the pastry ' and of the king's shoemaker ; in
1628 Sir Robert Hatton's son was admitted on
pressure, and Wotton wrote to John Dineby,
ambassador at the Hague, about his son ; in
1629 a place was begged for the son of an
exiled baron of Austria, and Sir George Kevet's
(? Knyvett's) son headed the list. The election
of that year Wotton describes as ' the most
troublesome election that has ever been since
that nurse first gave milk, over charged with
King's letters 4 recommendatory and one man-
datory, besides messengers and intercessions from
divers great personages . . . enough to make us
think ourselves shortly electors of the empire.'
Next year he writes to a ' noble nephew ' that
' his list of names cannot be served,' and recom-
130 Izaak Walton, Lives (ed. 1864), 117.
131 Etoniana, May 1907, from Cat. S.P. Dom.
194
SCHOOLS
mends dividing them between Eton and West-
minster, where the election was three weeks
earlier, adding ' that school mouldeth good
scholars and of certainer preferment to either of
the Universities (for some go to Oxford and
some to Cambridge) than this, out of which the
issue is always hard and the entrance not always
easy.' In 1638 Wotton tells of four Privy
Councillors, ' three of them of the highest,'
already promised, and says ' the world is nimble
in the anticipating of voices.' Wotton died in
1639 and was buried in chapel with an inscrip-
tion which shows that he was somewhat inor-
dinately vain of his mots : ' Here lies the first
author of this saying — " The itch of disputation
is the plague of the church."' His portrait is in
the provost's lodge.
The mastership had passed in 1636 from
John Harrison to William Norn's, usher from
1623. His incoming is described by Robert
Boyle as ' the change of his old courteous school-
master for a new rigid fellow,' which drove him
from Terence and grammar to history. Norris
was probably Puritanically inclined. When the
new provost, Richard Steward, an ex-fellow of
All Souls, Oxford, clerk of the king's closet, and
Dean of Chichester, went off at the beginning
of the Civil War to join the king, taking with
him the college seal and, it is believed, all the
old plate, Norris stuck to his post and remained
mister till 1646. No statutable election to
King's could take place in the absence of the
provost ; but, in spite of a royal mandate on
6 July 1643, elections did take place both in 1643
and 1644. Steward was displaced and 'Francis
Rous of Brixham, Devon, esquire,' made pro-
vost by ordinance of Parliament 10 February
1643—4. So far from being 'an illiterate old
Jew,' as Anthony Wood calls him, because he
was a Parliamentarian, he was of a good old
family, and a learned man. Son of Sir Anthony
Rous of Hutton St. Dominick, Cornwall, he
was a commoner of Broadgates Hall (now Pem-
broke College), Oxford, in 1593, B.A. 1596,
and afterwards spent some time at the University
of Leydcn. He entered at the Middle Temple
in 1601, and was M.P. for Truro in 1626, for
Tregoney 1628, and for Truro in the Long
Parliament. He sat for Devon in the Parlia-
ment of 1653. He. wrote the metrical version
of the psalms used in the Kirk of Scotland, and
other learned and theological works.
In August the Committee for PlundereJ
Ministers and Schoolmasters were ordered to fill
up the places of the fellows who had deserted.
For the often repeated allegation 1M that ' the
destruction of Eton was imminent,' there is not
the smallest foundation in fact. On the contrary,
so careful was Parliament about the schools, that
when an order was made for the sequestration la:
"* Maxwell Lyte, op. cit. (ed. 1 899), 248.
'» Ibid.
of the lands of deans and chapters as ' notorious
delinquents who had taken up arms against the
Parliament,' lest the incomes of cathedral gram-
mar schools, including Westminster, might be
jeopardized, and Winchester and Eton might be
thought included, it was on 20 October ordered
ex abundantl cautela that it be ' referred to a
committee ... to consider of the college of
Westminster, the colleges of Eaton, of Christ-
church in Oxford and Winchester, to provide
. . . that none of the revenues assigned for the
scholars and almsmen be stopped, or the payment
thereof intercepted, notwithstanding the ordi-
nance.' On 4 November another reference to
the same committee to consider how to seques-
trate chapter estates was accompanied by
directions ' to provide that the allowances assigned
for scholars, almsmen, and other charitable uses
might not be intercepted or diverted.' In point
of fact, the cathedral grammar schools, Canter-
bury, Gloucester, Durham, and the rest, were
so far from suffering from the Commonwealth,
that nearly all of them which had been kept
at the fixed payments originally prescribed by
Henry VIII were for the first time augmented
when the canons, ' the drones, were driven from
the hive.' As Eton College was clearly not
within the ordinance, it never was in any
more danger than Winchester, which flourished
under a Puritan or at least judicious warden
and head master. Nowhere did any school
suffer. Even notorious Royalists were left
alone, as Busby at Westminster, if they did
not openly oppose Parliament. As a matter of
fact even deans' and chapters' revenues were not
touched until 1644. At Eton the chapel
services were of course made to conform with
the dominant views. On 17 February 1642-3
Cambridge University petitioned Parliament
against the statute ' which imposeth the wearing
of surplices upon graduates and students . . .
reinforced by the canons of 1603," as 'against
law and the liberty of the subject,' and it was
declared not to be binding ; and on 20 February
'the colleges of Westminster Eaton and Win-
chester were added and comprehended within
the order . . . concerning the imposing upon
young scholars the wearing of surplices.'
It has been guessed that all the commensals
and oppidans disappeared because of the Civil
War. Thanks, probably, to the fanatical
furore of the Restoration, the audit books from
1642 to 1646 inclusive have disappeared. But
later there is positive evidence that there were
oppidans. Mr. Wasey Sterry m has printed a
letter from Peter Sterry, presumably an ancestor,
one of Cromwell's chaplains, to his two sons
who were oppidans. ' Son Peter ' had got into
trouble and was advised to ' keep the colledge and
not goe into towne. Be with no company,
especially in private places. Never be in com-
Annals, 132.
'95
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
pany of any woman kinde. Be very free to
your master. Speak often with him, acquaint
him with all your temptations, and dangers, and
troubles. . . . Go to your master for whatever
you want, pens, incke, or paper or anything
... he will supply you. . . If you finde the
temptations of the place too strong for you, I am
resolved to remove you before the Devil have
prevailed to farre over you.' The boy must have
been a boarder with one of the fellows. Again,
Andrew Marvell, the poet and M.P. for Hull,
lived at Eton in the house of one of the fellows,
John Oxenbridge, in charge of Dutton, a ward
of Cromwell's. So that though the war no
doubt diminished the numbers of oppidans, as
it did the revenues of everybody, it is clear that
if there was a slackening, there was no cessation,
in the flow of boys to the school.
The election of 1645 was held in the ordinary
way. The roll to King's was headed by
Christopher Wase, who, after being head master
of Tonbridge School, migrated to Oxford, where
he became Esquire Bedell of Law, and got
together materials for a history of schools, which
unfortunately still remain in MS.135 At Eton
as at other schools, notably Westminster, a
remarkable result of the biblical furore of the
time was the stimulus given to Hebrew. John
Janeway is recorded as passing an examination
in the language at the election.136
Provost Rous issued on 7 August 1646 some
'Rules for the Schollers.' They dealt chiefly
with religion, substituting for the old prayers a
psalm and prayers at getting up at 5 a.m. and
going to bed at 8 p.m., and providing for notes
of sermons and catechizing on 'the Lord's Day.'
The provost provided a preacher at £50 a year
out of his own pocket. On 13 February 1648-9
an Act of Parliament abolished deans and chap-
ters, and ordained a sale of their temporalities.
The spiritualities, tithes and livings, were reserved
for the Trustees for the Maintenance of Minis-
ters to make provision for preaching ministers
and schoolmasters. On 29 May it was thought
desirable, owing, no doubt, to the reservation in
the former Act, to pass ' an Act declaring that
the Act for abolishing of Deans and Chapters
doth not extend to the colleges of Winchester
and Eton.' But as the Act had contained an
express direction that all revenues, even of the
abolished chapters, which 'before 1st December
1641 had been or ought to have been paid to
the maintenance of any Grammar School or
Scholars, should continue to be paid,' any fears
for Eton, which was not under a chapter, must
have been groundless,137 and the Act was due to
excessive caution, owing to the fancied resem-
blance of Eton to Westminster. On the same
135 At C.C.C. Oxf.
186 Maxwell Lyte, op. cit. 246.
137 Yet Mr.Wasey Sterry, Annals of Eton Coll. (1898),
says ' the college nearly lost all its property.'
day the committee for regulating the universities
was ordered to nominate visitors ' for regulating
Winchester and Eaton.' On 12 October 1649
various officials were by Ordinance of the House
required to sign ' the engagement ' 'to be true
and faithful to the commonwealth of England as
the same is now established without a king or a
house of Lords,' and among them are the ' mas-
ters, fellows, and schoolmasters138 in Eton, Win-
chester, and Westminster Colleges.' Only one
fellow of Eton refused the test and was deprived —
John Hales, called ' the ever memorable ' by ' the
wits,' because he was a great conversationalist
and anecdotist. At first he had held latitu-
dinarian views, which he suppressed to become
chaplain to Laud and Canon of Windsor. After
his deprivation he went on living at Eton, where
he died in 1656. He is recorded as 'loving
canary.'
Nicholas Gray, the head master who had suc-
ceeded Norris in 1646, is alleged139 to have been
deprived for the same reason. But this statement
appears to be refuted by facts cited by those who
made it. Gray was an old Westminster, and
student of Christ Church, who had been appointed
first head master of Charterhouse in 1614,3 post
which he had to resign on marriage. He was
then made head master of Merchant Taylors'
School, which he resigned in 1632 for the vicarage
of Saffron Walden, Essex. Here he quarrelled
with the head master of the grammar school,
because, as was alleged, he wanted to convert
him into a kind of curate, and to take boarders
for the school. Gray must have been a Puritan
and Parliamentarian, or he would not have been
appointed by Rous to the head-mastership of Eton.
The date of the appointment cannot be exactly
ascertained, as there are no accounts preserved
between 1641, when Norris was still master,
and the year 1646-7, when Gray was paid for
the whole year. It is certain that he was not
ejected on the ' engagement.' For he ^>ad re-
tired from the mastership more than a year before
the execution of Charles I, his successor, Home,
appearing in the audit books as head master for
the whole year Michaelmas 1648—9, while
Gray was paid up to Michaelmas 1648. Gray
could hardly have been expelled from his post
for refusing an engagement not invented till a
year after he had left. The mistake seems to
have originated with Anthony Wood, who, how-
ever, does not say that Gray was turned out of
the mastership, but out of a fellowship and a
living. But Wood did not know the facts, for he
made Gray become master in 1631. Moreover
he is notoriously unscrupulous in his assertions as
to any ' Roundheads ' or their doings. In point
of fact there must have been some sort of bar-
138 Not the scholars, as Maxwell Lyte (op. cit.
p. 248), perhaps from a misreading of 'schoolemrs.'
139 Maxwell Lyte, op. cit. 251 ; Sterry, op. cit.
128 ; Cust, op. cit. 88.
196
SCHOOLS
gaining about Gray's retirement. For when
Thomas Home, head master of Tonbridge
School, came in his place, Gray took Home's
post at Tonbridge. The governors of Tonbridge,
the Skinners, a City company of London, the main
support of Parliamentarianism and Puritanism,
would not and indeed could not, have appointed to
their school a man expelled from Eton for refusing
the engagement, which all schoolmasters as well
as ministers were obliged to take. Gray held
Tonbridge School till the Restoration, and was
succeeded there by John Goad, who must have
been some relation of George Goad, whom
Sir Henry Maxwell Lyte interpolates as head
master in 1648, but there seems to be some
mistake about this. His name appears in the
audit book, not as master, but as a fellow, and
at the Restoration he was allowed to keep
his fellowship on the express ground 14° that he
had been appointed before the execution of
Charles I. Gray himself was at the Restoration
given a fellowship at Eton, and died a few months
later.
Thomas Home, the recorded successor of
Gray, wa^ a Derbyshire man, of Magdalen Hail,
Oxford, B.A. 1628, M.A. 1633. After keeping
a private school in London and then being for
two years master of Leicester Grammar School,
he was elected to Tonbridge in 1640. In 1645
he published a "Janua /inguarum, ' an easy method
and course for the attaining all tongues especially
Latin.' It was a sort of Bulgaria with 1,400
Latin sentences in it. In 1641 he dedicated to
the Skinners' Company, the Tonbridge governors,
a Manuductlo in aedem Palladis, a ' guide to the
house of Pallas,' a treatise on the use of Latin
authors. Home held office at Eton till his death
22 August 1654. He was succeeded by John
Boncle, pronounced Bunkley, as Wood informs
us, and indeed so spelt in the Eton audit books.
He, like Gray, had been master of Charterhouse
School, appointed there in 1653. He was a
Cambridge man who had been admitted M.A.
of Oxford 22 December 1652, on special letters
from Protector Oliver. He stayed only a year
as head master at Eton, then taking a fellowship,
from which he was expelled at the Restoration ;
but he found employment as master of the Mer-
cers' School 3 April i66i,m where he remained
for fifteen years till his death in 1677, when his
son succeeded him. Thomas Singleton, the
next Eton master, was the son of a vicar of
Basildon, Berkshire, and had matriculated at
Queen's College, Oxford, 19 May 1637. He
was master of the Free Grammar School of
St. Mary Axe in London.
Provost Rous, after being Speaker of Bare-
bone's Parliament, and a Lord of the Upper
"• S.P. Dom. Chas. II, quoted by Lytc himself, op.
cit. 262.
111 John VVatncy, Ike Merctrf Schoel (1896), 13,
>5» 37-
House, died on 7 January 1659. He was
buried in Lupton's chapel at Eton, which in his
will he described as 'a place which hath my
deare affections and prayers, that it may be
a flourishing nursery of pietie and learning to the
end of the world.' His monument was dese-
crated and defaced by the ' fool-fury ' of the
Restoration. His portrait as Speaker still adorns
the provost's dining-room. His connexion
with Eton is still living, as he founded by his
will 8 March 1675-8 (proved 10 February
following) what is now a scholarship of j£6o
a year for Etonians at Pembroke College,
Oxford. The original gift was one of two
annuities of ^40 and ^2O respectively, charged on
the tithes of Great Bookham, Surrey, and on land
at Cookbury, Devonshire, for 3 scholars 'of low
fortune, viz. under jTio a year '^-equivalent
to about j£iOO a year now — of his next of kin,
or ' failing such . . . then of the two upper
forms of Eton school.' They were to study
divinity and to give some public specimen
of their proficiency therein before becoming
B.A's. The University Commission in 1857
abolished the preference for next of kin, and
consolidated the three scholarships into one.
The value of the scholarships was magnificent
at the time ; but being secured by a fixed
charge, the gift is only one of many instances
of the superior wisdom of those benefactors who
gave land in specie to provide for their benefac-
tions in perpetuity. Provost Rous therefore
deserves more gratitude than party writers on
Eton history have allowed him.
After Rous' death, on 14 January 1659, the
fellows elected Nicholas Lockyer, one of them-
selves, as provost. But on the Restoration a few
months later he resigned, and George Monk,
brother of General Monk, the traitor who
brought back the Stuarts, was appointed on
7 July 1660 by letters patent. A few months
later he was made Bishop of Hereford, but
retained the provostry with it. He died 17
December 1661. After Dr. Thomas Browne,
the king's nominee, had been rejected on the
ground of heresy and schism, Dr. John Mere-
dith, warden of All Souls, was appointed
February 1 66 1 . He too, was a pluralist, con-
tinuing to reside at All Souls, where he died
in 1665.
Singleton, the master, received short shrift.
A letter to the Secretary of State, Nicholas, from
John Price, one of the new fellows, written at
the Cockpit, Whitehall, on 14 July 1660,
informs him that Singleton had been removed
by the provost and fellows and asks that in case
he 'shall petition to be restored (as I understand
he intendeth to doe),' the proceedings should be
stayed till the college could be heard. If
Singleton petitioned he did so in vain. Thomas
Mountague, ' who had been 1 9 years usher in
the scholc, a vcric worthie gentleman, and
'97
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
debarred of any farther promotion, because not
well looked on by Mr. Rouse and Mr. Lockier,
the late pretended Provosts,' had been already
admitted.
This promoted usher was an Etonian, who
had headed the roll to King's in 1632, so that
he was quite old for those days, being forty
before he became master. He held office for
eleven years, retiring on a fellowship in 1671.
His first usher was John Price (King's 1645).
The next was William Home (King's 1656),
son of Thomas Home, the master. He after-
wards became head master of Harrow, to which
school from this time Eton stood in much the
same position of foster-mother as Winchester had
done to Eton. It is to its Etonian masters
modelling it on Eton that Harrow is indebted
for its later greatness.
Anthony Wood has preserved U2 some interest-
ing notes on the school at this date : —
At Eaton the Mr came in at 7 & took themes, read-
ing the good & bad, commending the one & shameing
the other, together with punishing it. He went from
one forme to another till 9, then they went to break-
fast and at 10 to prayers & so came no more to school
at morning, but after dinner were obliged to goe to
exercise in the fields at skittles, etc., till one a clock.
Also an hour after, the Mr came in & staid till
three, then the schollars went to their beaver till 4 &
then came to school till 5. They had theme & verse
every night. They translated out of verse into prose
& i contra, & out of latine in to Greek. Some time
translated an oracion into English.
At first they began with the parts of a theme, then
threw them off.
They repeated all their verse without book at
week's end & construed & parsed exactly every lesson,
but learnt al[l] their prose without book. They learnt
nomenclaturae at breakings up.
At Eaton they read Demosthenes, Homer, Zeno-
phon (lie), Tull[y's] Tusculane Questions, Terence,
Juvenal, Persius. They acted Andria. They read
Janua Knguarum in theii private studyes. They
make verses at 3 in the even and make 30 to 40 lines
of Theme by next morning. They make nonsense
verses at first.
They had collections which the master allowed
time to peruse.
He gave them an English Curtius, and he held
the Latine one in his hand, & then shewed them
their faults.
They used Winchester phrases. Mr. Montague,
the schoolmaster, said Virgil words may serve for
prose ; they are so natural and good Latine.
At the elec[c]ion they have a theme given them over
night which they shewed next morning. And then
new Themes given them whereupon in half a quarter
of an houre they are to turne to a window & make
2 or 4 Latine verses, & [are] examind to construe
some of the Greek and Latin authors they read.
'Tis easy getting in schollars because there are so
many void yearly.
At Kings Colledge they dispute every other day for
3 weeks & have declamations on Thursdayes.
141 Bodl. Rawl. MS. D. 191, fol. 4-6, c. 1670.
Mr. Davies wrote to Wood : —
Westminster, Winchester and Eaton schollers think
none schollers but themselves.
Discipline seems to have been slack at this
time, as in 1665 Provost Meredith found it
necessary to provide that ' the publique dores of
the Schoole and Longe Chamber shalbe secured by
new locks, and the keys . . . taken every night
immediately after prayers, and that those schollers
whoe shall goe out of the schoole or college any
evening, without leave of the Provost, or Vice-
Provost shalbe admonished and registered for the
first fault ; severely punished for the second, and
the third expelled.' Four boys, for going to the
' Christopher,' the celebrated inn which for cen-
turies proved a snare to Eton morals, had to read
' a form of repentance ' in school. A few weeks
later one of them, Curwin, and another boy,
Baker, ' were admonished and whipt and regis-
tered for going out of their bounds to Datchet
ale-houses and beating the fishermen.' Curwin
was, notwithstanding, elected to King's the same
year.
On Meredith's death, Richard Allestree, an
old Westminster boy and student of Christ
Church, who had fought at Edgehill for the king,
had been ejected from Christ Church by the Par-
liamentary visitors, and subsequently imprisoned
during the Protectorate as a suspected royalist
spy, was nominated provost. He was then
Regius Professor of Divinity at Oxford, and as
such continued to reside at Oxford during the
sixteen years of his provostry, only going to Eton
for audits and election:..
On Mountague's retirement from the master-
ship in 1671, another 'alien,' John Rosewell,
was elected. He matriculated at Magdalen Hall,
Oxford, in 1652, and subsequently became fellow
of Corpus Christ! College. He took his B.A.
degree in 1655, his M.A. in 1659, and hisB.D.
in 1667. His reign is distinguished by the first
Eton School list, preserved among the Rawlinson
MSS. at the Bodleian, Dr. Rawlinson having in
1710 designed a history of the colleges of Win-
chester and Eton. It is for the year 1678, and
no other list is forthcoming for forty years after.
It is written, not printed, on a half sheet of
parchment. The school numbered 207, includ-
ing nine who were probably choristers. The
Vllth form had now disappeared. In the Vlth
form there were only eight boys, all collegers, in
the Vth form 19 collegers and 19 oppidans.
Form I had disappeared, and form II was already
disappearing, consisting only of nine collegers and
25 oppidans. The Biblers' Seat, if indeed it
be intended for a form, consisted of one boy.
Oddly enough the collegers numbered 78. But
perhaps the eight boys in the Vlth had already
been, or were on the point of being, elected for
King's. It is remarkable that only one lord, and
that a Scotch one, the son of the Earl of Stirling,
198
SCHOOLS
figures in the list, but there are three baronets.
Comparing this list with the contemporary one
at Winchester, where lists are extant, with some
gaps, from 1653, it shows that Eton was already
the bigger school, Winchester containing 136
names only. It, too, only boasted of one lord,
Clifford, and four sons of noblemen. West-
minster was probably bigger than either, as its
earliest list in 1656 contains 241 boys. Through-
out the 1 7th century Winchester was the most
frequented by the aristocracy, being patronized
by Charles II, whose favourite residence was
Winchester. In the i8th century, when the
next extant Westminster lists are found, West-
minster eclipsed both Eton and Winchester in
numbers, in aristocratic connexion and in the
scholars, poets, statesmen, and other celebrities
it produced. In 1706, for instance, it had 353
boys, in 1725 434; while Eton numbered 353
in 1707, but in 1742 only 284. It is to the
patronage of George III, making Eton a school
for the Tory aristocracy in rivalry to the detested
Whig junto who flocked to Westminster, that
Eton owes the beginning of its proud pre-
eminence among schools.
From this time we may date the modern era
in schools. Henceforth the religio-political
rivalries, which had caused provosts and fellows
and masters to be put in or put out as one fac-
tion or the other dominated church and state,
ceased to operate on schools. Schools indeed
went up or down in numbers on account of
their political connexion during the i/th and
1 8th centuries, but this was owing to the pre-
dilections of parents, and no longer to the
forcible interference of politicians.
Rosewell is said 'to have much raised the
credit of the school.' He retired on a fellow-
ship in 1680. His successor was Charles
Roderick, Etonian and Kingsman, who had been
usher. From his time until now, the head-
mastership, instead of being held chiefly by
outsiders, together with the other masterships,
was always held by Etonians, and, until 1868,
by collegers and Kingsmen. Roderick, who
held office for ten years, was described as 'the
flogging schoolmaster of Welsh extraction with
a Spanish name.' He became in 1690 the hero
of a struggle between King's College and the
Crown for the right to elect its own provost, in
his person, and prevailed. Again the usher,
John Newborough, succeeded to the vacant
place, and held it for eleven years. In 1694-5
the present Upper School was built. A new
Upper School had been erected not thirty years
before by Provost Allestree, but was so badly
built that it was already falling down. The
cost of the new one, raised chiefly by subscrip-
tion,, came to just under ^2,300. Newborough
is highly spoken of in Rawlinson's unpublished
history as ' of a graceful person and comely
aspect. . . . Very pathetical were his reproofs
and dispassionate his punishments, and when any
hopes of amendment appeared he declined severe
remedies.' From which it would seem that the
rule of the rod was somewhat abated. He had
'a delightful copla vcrborum . . . Terence's vis
comica received new graces from his mouth.'
On Newborough's resignation in 1711 An-
drew Snape became head master. So successful
was he that the school had risen to 399 when in
1719 he was elected Provost of King's. Henry
Bland, his successor at Eton, headed the roll to
King's in 1695, the next but one being Robert
Walpole, the first Etonian Prime Minister.
From 1700 Bland had been master of Doncaster
Grammar School, where his salary was ^50 a
year, with £10 'for a good usher not concerned
in any curacy in the church or chapel.' There
was not then the gap which now separates the
grammar school, which arrogates to itself the
exclusive title of Public School, from the gram-
mar school of local fame ; the county families
then frequented the nearest grammar school,
whether Eton or Chesterfield, or Doncaster.
Bland had the honour of educating William
Pitt, the great Lord Chatham, who, however,
does not appear to have thought himself much
indebted to Eton, as he brought up his even
more famous son at home under a private tutor.
The elder William Pitt's school bills are pre-
served. His half year's bill in 1719 amounted
to ^29 Of. 3<£ He was then under Mr. Good,
the usher, to whom he paid two guineas for the
half year, and double that amount to his tutor
Mr. Burchet, while j£i 21. was paid to the
writing master. His great rival, Henry Fox,
and Charles Pratt, afterwards Lord Camden,
were his contemporaries there. William Pitt
wrote from school to his father as ' Honored Sir*
and gave his ' duty to mama.' Bland, being a
good Whig, was made Dean of Durham by his
old school-fellow, Walpole, in 1728, and four
years later also Provost of Eton.
Bland's son-in-law, William George, followed
him at Eton. He is said by Lord Chancellor
Camden to have been ' pompous, sour tempered,
ill-mannerly and brutal.' Yet two of his pupils
were the sprightly Horace Walpole, and Thomas
Gray, the author of the Ehgy, who delighted
'to cleave with pliant arm the glassy wave . . .
to chase the rolling circle's speed, and urge the
flying ball.' It is a moot point whether the
' rolling circle ' is a hoop or a cricket ball ; the
' flying ball ' must be football. The first re-
corded school rebellion took place in George's
second year. His successor, William Cooke,
who had been an assistant master, held office for
only three years. According to Cole, the anti-
quary, who was an Etonian, Cooke ' being found
not equal ' to the post ' was made fellow to let
him down gently and to get rid of his imperti-
nence, insolence, and other unamiable qualities.'
Of John Summer, the next master, Cole
199
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
writes that he had been private tutor to Lord
Mountfort, and was ' a great scholar. It was
supposed his reputation would retrieve the mis-
chief of Cooke's mastership ; but success was not
adequate to expectation.' In 1745 the numbers
had sunk to 244. But the reputation of the
school was restored and more than restored
under Edward Barnard, 1754-65, when they
rose to over 500. Charles James Fox was the
most distinguished of them, but he owed little
to Eton, from which his father used to take him
to play the fop at Paris.
Barnard mitigated the rule of the birch.
John Foster, who succeeded him on his election
as provost in 1765, could only govern by its
aid. He was the son of a Windsor tradesman,
which of itself did not increase his popularity.
The result was that he brought the school down
to 230 and had to resign in 1773. In 1768 a
rebellion broke out in which 156 boys and the
Vlth and Upper Vth forms left the school, threw
their books into the Thames, and spent a night
out at Maidenhead, owing to a controversy as to
the right of assistant masters to send back pre-
postors to college when caught out of bounds.
Many went home ; among them William
Grenville, afterwards Prime Minister, who was
sent back by his father to be flogged and then
removed. There is extant a full curriculum and
time-table143 drawn up about 1765 by James,
who went to King's in 1766, and, as head
master of Rugby, first made that school into ' a
great Public School.' It is recorded144 that
George III, who was more Etonian than Eton-
ians, in congratulating James on his success at
Rugby, said : ' No wonder ! you were educated
at Eton.'
James's time-table shows that, as at Winches-
ter, all saints' days were holidays, every Tues-
day was a whole holiday, and every Thursday a
half-holiday, while on Saturday school ended
with afternoon chapel at 3, this being called ' a
play at four.' The other days were known as
whole-school days. But arithmetic and geo-
graphy, for which Salmon's Geography was
used, and writing for ' the littles,' were taught
on holidays. On whole-school days school now
began at 7 o'clock, though the first lesson was
still called 'six o'clock lesson.' Breakfast was
at 9. School began again at n, and ended at
12. Afternoon school began at 3 and ended at
5. The Vlth and Vth forms seem to have
begun work at 8 o'clock only, but went on in
the afternoon to 6. It is amazing to find that
in construing Homer, which was done on Mon-
day morning, the Vlth form still construed it, not
into English, but into Latin verse, about thirty-
five lines at a time, while the Vth did it into
143 Etoniana, July 1906. The original belongs to
the present Chief Commissioner of Works, the Rt.
Hon. L. Vernon Harcourt.
144 Annals of Eton, 204.
English, about fourteen lines at a time. In
reading Cicero, Middleton's Cicero was used,
which the boys were supposed to read by them-
selves out of school, with Roman and Greek
history, Milton, Pope, 'and all other books
necessary towards making a compleat scholar.'
An immense amount of repetition was done.
Monday was ushered in with twenty verses of
Greek Testament by heart ; the other days
thirty lines of Epigrammatum delectus or Selecta
ex Tullio, &c., and, in the summer, Horace's
Odes, at the rate of seven or eight a day.
Theocritus was read on Thursday, and on
Saturday Greek plays, including Aristophanes,
and Thucydides. But no author was read as a
whole, only in selections. There was a great
quantity of Latin prose and verse done. Every
Monday a theme ' on some good subject from
the Spectator or Tatler or Guardian,' for about
twenty lines of prose was done, and at 3 p.m.
an extempore epigram of four lines, with a joke
in it, had to be made. The writer actually
thinks it necessary to say that ' if the boys are
not able to cut a joke on the theme, they ought
by no means to be punished.' Subjects for
' Longs and Shorts,' or Elegiacs, were given out
on Monday, and twenty to twenty-six lines sent
in on Thursday. Alcaics or other irregular
metres were done for 'Third Exercise.' One
Greek Exercise a week was done, a translation
from Latin into Greek. A month before the
end of term, Declamations were spoken every
Saturday and likewise speeches. English litera-
ture, it will be seen, was by no means wholly
neglected, and was probably the better appre-
ciated by being not a regular subject taught in
school, but read in leisure time and chiefly with
a view to illustrate the classics.
At this time there were, besides the head
master and the usher, now called the lower
master, ten assistant masters and three writing
masters. A French master taught out of school,
as did the drawing master ; the latter was Henry
Angelo, and his family long remained at Eton.
The masters, except one of the writing masters,
Evans, did not keep the boarding houses, which,
as in Malim's day, were kept chiefly by ' Dames,'
though there were three 'domines.' College
contained only 52 boys. It had become a very
rough and undesirable place, and remained so
until it was thrown open to competitive exami-
nation, nearly a century later. Oppidans would
hardly consort with the ' tugs,' as collegers were
called, who were largely drawn from the lower
ranks, noble lords getting, it was said, their
butlers' and other poor dependants' sons into it.
Hence it was seldom if ever full.
It seems strange to read in the Nugae Etonenses,
written about this same year, that the games
played included battledores, peg-top, hop-scotch,
marbles, hoops, trapball, puss in the corner,
chuck [farthing], and hunt the hare. Cricket
200
SCHOOLS
and fives head the list, and the Eton fives court,
with its pepper box and step, was derived from
the space between the two chapel buttresses near
the door, which formed the principal court. A
tennis court is mentioned.
From this time onward the career of Eton has
been one of almost unchequered success. To
the influence of George III this is largely due.
Living chiefly at Windsor, he identified himself
with the school like a local patriot ; the boys
were frequently asked up to the castle to f£tes
and entertainments, and the king or his family
often attended the Speeches and other school
functions, and in 1 799 he actually performed the
duty of marshal to the 'Montem' procession.
Jonathan Davies, who succeeded Foster as
head master in 1773, created a record in the
length of his stay in the office, which was just
short of twenty years. He was ' in conversation
too much of a Stentor,' but ' learned, pleasant,
generous.' He had to cope with a rebellion in
1783, when the whipping-post or flogging-block
was broken up ; but the cause of the outbreak
was a contest of the lower forms with the
assistant masters, not with him. In 1791 he
retired on election as provost. The first printed
school list is for this year, and shows 433 boys,
of whom 45 were in college. He founded some
scholarships for collegers. George Heath, who
followed, was a great flogger, and after flogging
70 boys on one occasion — it is supposed on the
occasion of the first cricket match played against
Westminster in 1796 at Hounslow Heath, which
resulted in a complete defeat — he was laid up
with aches and pains for more than a week. In
1798 there was another great flogging because a
number of Vth Form and Lower boys shirked
'absence 'to row up to Maidenhead. There
were then four 8-oars and two 6-oars in the pro-
cession on the king's birthday, 4 June, which
had, not without reason, superseded the obit of
Henry VI as the great day at Eton. Boat races
had not yet begun. In 1802 Heath retired on a
fellowship. Joseph Goodall reigned from 1802
to 1809, when he was made provost ; Benjamin
Heath, recommended by the Prime Minister,
being rejected by George III because 'he ran
away to Harrow,' i.e. had been head master
there. The greatest name in his day is that of
Shelley, who, however, does not seem to have
enjoyed his schooldays. Then began the
'reign of terror* of John Kcate, who had been
lower master. His name is famous as the modern
Orbilius, the champion flogger of modern times.
He was very unpopular to start with. He is
described in Kinglake's Eothen as ' little more if
at all than 5 feet high,' with bushy red eyebrows,
which he used as a beetle does its antennae, as a
kind of index fingers. ' He had a really noble
voice, which he could modulate with great skill,
but also had the power of quacking like an angry
duck, and he almost always adopted this mode of
communication in order to insure respect.' His
determination to enforce discipline, which had
been very slack under Goodall, soon brought him
into collision with the boys. In 1810 a rebellion
was caused by an ' absence ' being imposed to
prevent an unseemly rush into chapel. Some
HO boys were involved. When 20 had been
flogged the rest began to throw rotten eggs. The
other masters were summoned, and flogging or
expulsion was offered to the culprits ; and 60
more submitted to the flogging. The well-known
stories of ' Be pure in heart or I'll flog you,' and
of the flogging of a whole confirmation class
because the list of them was taken for a flogging
bill, must be received cum grant, as good stories,
in the double sense.
During his long reign of twenty-five years
Keate encountered at least two more e'meutes
which were of the dimensions of a rebellion.
One was in 1818, when he tried to put down
tandem driving. His desk was broken to pieces.
When 4 boys were expelled and the rest were
told to behave better, one Palk exclaimed
' Never,' and was expelled on the spot ; so the
rebellion became known as Palk's rebellion.
Towards the end of Keate's career an outbreak
took place over the expulsion of a boy named
Monro, who went to a boat race when he ought
to have been doing a poena or imposition. The
Vth Form shouted ' Monro ! Monro ! ' at
absence, so three penal ' absences ' were imposed.
Over 100 stayed away, but Keate waited till
they were in bed and then had them up in blocks
of 10 to 20 and flogged them all, the opera-
tion lasting till the small hours of Sunday morn-
ing. On this occasion he was cheered by the
Vlth Form next morning. It must not be
supposed that Eton was singularly barbarous at
this time. Winchester, Harrow, Rugby — all
had their rebellions and their floggings. The
whole system of the Public Schools was behind
the age, and the turmoil they lived in was due to
the manners and customs of barbarous ages being
continued at school in times when home life and
manners in society had become civilized.
With all his flogging Keate did not succeed
in keeping order even in school. The reason
chiefly was that the classes were enormous. In
1833 for 570 boys in the Upper School, which
had repeatedly enlarged itself at the expense of
the Lower School, the lower forms gradually
vanishing away, there were only 9 masters all
told. Keate had at one time 198 boys in his
own division, and one of them records that he
was only called on in school twice in a whole
half. By further sub-divisions these were reduced
to 170 boys, and eventually to 100. But order
or decent teaching with even 100 boys in a class
was well-nigh impossible. Songs were sung in
school, paper pellets, and, on occasion, rotten
eggs, were thrown. As an illustration of Keate's
milder moments, a story is told of how one
201
26
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Dallas hurled a stone at him in school. Keate
demanding who it was, Dallas got up and said :
' It was me, sir, and I beg your pardon,' and
nothing further was said.
Those boys who wished to learn learnt from
the 32 private tutors who looked after them out
of school. Keate himself was a good scholar,
and his Vlth Form lessons in ' chambers,' the old
head master's chamber by Long Chamber, were
said to be inspiring. But the books used were
still limited to those of James's day, somewhat en-
larged, the Scriptures Graeci and Scriptorti Romani.
An immense amount of verse was done, and that
secured good scholarship. The best training was
that of the boys themselves of themselves in the
magazines they started, the College Magazine, the
Horae Otiosae, W. M. Praed's Apis Matina in
1820, the Etonian in 1821, the Eton Miscellany in
1828, and the Eton College Magazine in 1832 ;
still more in the plays that they performed ; and,
above all, in the debating society, officially known
as the Eton Society, commonly called ' Pop.'
This was started in 1811 by C. F. Townshead,
who died at the age of twenty-two when a
candidate for Parliament for Cambridge
University. Its members were at first called
literati, and the name of ' Pop ' is said to be due
to the twenty original members having first met
at Mrs. Hatton's, a cook-shop or popina, where
they breakfasted once a week. The successes of
Etonians at the universities showed that it was
possible to learn there if you had a turn for
learning, and probably the learning was all the
keener for being almost wholly a voluntary
effort.
It was at this time also that games began to
take their present form. In 1818 cricket matches
began with Harrow, when Harrow won ; and in
1826 with Winchester, when Winchester won.
In 1826 and 1830 there were boat races with
Westminster.
In 1834 Keate, being a canon of Windsor,
retired to a Windsor living in Hampshire. The
boys made him a presentation of plate costing
jTooo, at which he was so overcome that he
could only acknowledge it by lifting the redoubt-
able cocked hat which he wore as his official head
covering, and which he hurled on the floor on
taking leave of the assistant masters, never to be
worn again.
The senior assistant master, Edward Craven
Hawtrey, member of an old Etonian family,
succeeded Keate. A heavy fall from 627 boys
to 486 took place, whether from the change of
man or from an outburst of criticism of the Eton
system is not clear. Hawtrey introduced some
reforms, especially that of a reduction in the
size of the forms, placing the masters in separate
class-rooms, and giving each form a separate
master specially responsible for it. Provost
Francis Hodgson, who was forced on the college
by the Crown after Goodall's death in 1840,
was more efficient as a reformer. He reformed
college at a cost of ,£ 14,000, giving separate
rooms to 49 seniors, and improving the food,
while he made admission depend on competitive
examination, with the result that instead of being
half empty, and a place to be shunned by every-
one not driven to it by dire poverty, it is now
sought after a great deal too much. When the
sons of Speakers and cabinet ministers, and
still more, men rich with revenues that do not
die with them, are found in it, the intention of
the founder seems to have been departed from as
much as in the days when it was handed over to
the lackeys of the great and the petty tradesmen
of the rich.
In 1851 mathematics were made a part of the
regular curriculum, and six mathematical masters
appointed. The numbers rose from 444 in
1835 to 777.
Provost Hodgson died prematurely in 1852,
and Hawtrey, the head master, succeeded him.
Charles Old Goodford, an assistant master,
' honest, righteous, brave, prudent, but sleepy,
weak in health, and unpolished,' became head
master. He enlarged the area of selection of
masters by no longer restricting them to Kings-
men or to collegers. In 1861 the Public Schools
Commission was appointed. The same year
saw the earnest of future innovations in the be-
ginning of the new schools or classrooms, a red
brick building in the Tudor style, on the oppo-
site side of the Slough Road to Upper School.
Hawtrey died in i86i,and Goodford became
provost in his place, the provostry being now
regarded as almost a perquisite of the head
master. Edward Balston, an assistant master,
afterwards Archdeacon of Derby, succeeded. He
was not a man to initiate reforms, and when the
Public Schools Act was passed he retired. Under
this Act a new governing body was substituted
for the provost and fellows, consisting of the
provosts of the two colleges, nominees of the
two ancient universities, of the Royal Society, of
the Lord Chief Justice, and of the Eton masters,
and two to four co-optatives. In 1871 they
made new statutes, repealing the old, which had
in fact ceased to be observed. The chief change
was the partial severance of the connexion with
King's, that college being no longer confined to
Etonians, though Eton has the preference for
half the scholarships. Of late years these have
so much declined in value that often the full
number from Eton is not filled up.
The new head master, John James Hornby,
was the first for nearly 200 years who was
not a Kingsman or a colleger or an assistant
master. An oppidan and an Oxonian, at Balliol
he had obtained a first class in classics in 1849,
and rowed in the Oxford eight ; and as a fellow
of Brasenose he had attained distinction. He
had also been a tutor at Durham University.
As second master at Winchester in 1866 to 1868
202
SCHOOLS
he had won all hearts, and shareJ in and wit-
nessed the advantage of the reforms effected there
by Dr. Ridding. He was thus able to bring a
wide experience to bear on the difficult problems
with which the report of the Royal Commission
(published in 1865) confronted him. The re-
forms accomplished by him "* were so great that,
as Sir Henry Maxwell Lyte remarks, less differ-
ences are observable between the time-tables of
1765 and 1865 than between those of 1865 and
1875. Many of them were the result of the
recommendations of the Commission.
1. Morning chapel was introduced ; a short-
ened daily service being held, attended by all
the school, at 9.25. Previously boys attended
chapel, or rather church as it was more correctly
called till about 1 860, at 1 1 and 3 on holidays
and at 3 on half-holidays. Instead of this
' Absences,' i.e. ' Callings over,' were substituted.
2. For the system of moving upwards from
the Vth form merely by seniority was substituted
admission to the first three divisions, the First
Hundred, by ' trials ' or examination.
3. Extra Studies, or ' Extras ' as they were
called, were imposed on the ' First Hundred,'
every member of which might choose a subject
from modern languages, science, history, and the
less-read classical authors, on which he had to
spend four hours a week. For this purpose two
extra school hours (at 9.45 and 10.30 respec-
tively) were established on all half-holidays.
Instead of this one hour a day is now given.
But there has been no increase in the number of
hours, as stated by Sir H. Maxwell Lyte.
4. French became compulsory for all boys
below the first three divisions.
5. Science became a regular part of the work
of the Vth form in 1869, and of the ' Remove '
in 1875. A chemical laboratory and lecture-
room were built at a cost of j£ 3,000 contributed
by the head master and some old Etonian friends
— the college being at the time too poor to
undertake the work. The assistant masters con-
tributed liberally.
6. All the mathematical, science, and French
masters were raised to the same status with the
classical. The scale of payment was rearranged.
7. 'Dames,' or keepers of boarding-houses
who were not masters, were abolished. No new
leases of boarding-houses were given to anyone
not on the teaching staff.
8. An army class was established,1" separated
from the rest of the school, so as to admit of
"* The main authority for thii is Eton, by A. Glut-
ton Brock, of New College, Oxford, in George Bell's
Handbooks to the Great Public Schools.
144 Sir H. Maxwell Lyte states that this separate
class was first instituted by Dr. Warre in 1886. Dr.
Warre, on his accession, discontinued the separate
class for a time in order to try whether the ordinary
school work was sufficient or not. After a trial of
less than two years the separate class was revived.
more continuous instruction in the particular
subjects required. This, under Mr. Walter
Durnford's management, proved very successful,
and showed that boys going straight from Eton
could obtain the highest places in the exami-
nation without resorting to private tuition.
9. Among many minor changes two may be
specially mentioned as departures from very old
customs, viz. the abolition of Leaving Money'
and ' Leaving Books.' Under the former of
these every boy had been compelled to leave a
fee on the head master's table when he took
leave of him. A capitation tax was henceforth
substituted for this curious custom of ' tipping.'
But the head master still gives every boy who
obtains his bent disceait a copy of Gray's Poems,
as a ' leaving book.'
It had long been the custom for boys to give
each other leaving books. The Royal Commis-
sion, observing that this pleasant usage had
degenerated into extravagance, and had become
a serious tax upon parents, recommended its dis-
continuance.
10. The Eton Mission in Hackney Wick was
started in 1880, under the Rev. W. M. Carter,
now Bishop of Pretoria.
Dr. Hornby's rule lasted for sixteen years —
from 1868 to 1884. It was a time of change,
and of much external criticism — sometimes fair,
sometimes malicious — perhaps the most critical
period through which Eton has passed in the last
hundred years. The danger was happily over-
come by the wisdom and tact of the head master,
to whom Provost Goodford U7 ' gave very
generous and ungrudging help.' The change in
the system of education produced no violent dis-
location of the teaching machinery, and when,
in 1884, Provost Goodford died, and was suc-
ceeded by Dr. Hornby, the school had passed
through its revolutionary period, and it remained
for the new head master only to improve the
efficiency of the system already established.
The new head master was Edmund Warre,
who left Eton in 1855 for Oxford as a scholar
of Balliol, and in due time became a first-class
man and fellow of All Souls. He was, when
elected, an assistant master at Eton and captain
of the Rifle Corps. He might perhaps best be
described as of the school of Tom Hughes, the
author of Tom Brown's School Days, an apostle of
muscular Christianity and strenuousness.
In 1889 the memorial stone of 'Queen's
Schools,' which include a science lecture-room
and a museum, was laid by Queen Victoria. The
same year the lower chapel, to hold 400 lower
boys, was begun, the architect being Sir Arthur
Blomfield ; it was opened in 1891. Of an in-
ferior kind of churchwarden Gothic, it can hardly
be considered a thing of beauty.
'" Provost Goodford had done excellent work, and
introduced numerous reforms as head master.
203
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
No bounds being set to numbers, the boys under
Dr. Warre passed the thousand, attaining 1,007
in 1891, and the then high-water mark, 1,035,
in 1896. Dr. Warre saw out the igth century.
At the beginning of the 20th century, in
Dr. Edward Lyttelton, Eton has turned once
more to Cambridge, though to Trinity, not to
King's, for its head master. His success, first as
a house master at Eton, and then as head master
at Haileybury, and the position he had taken in
educational discussions, had marked him out as
the certain successor to Dr. Warre on his retire-
ment in 1905.
Among recent buildings most prominent is the
red-brick stone-pedimented palace in the style of
Charles II, the new boarding-house of Mr. E. L.
Vaughan, called Wotton House, fronting on
Timbralls, otherwise Tymbershaw, otherwise
Sixpenny. It is one of the most striking build-
ings which meet the eye on approaching Eton
from Slough.
A building destined for a school library in a
rococo Renaissance style, with a dome somewhat
after that of the church of Santa Maria della
Salute at Venice, is in course of erection on the
opposite side of the road to Wayneflete's ante-
chapel. A stronger contrast than the new presents
to the old building could not have been devised.
Theory has not been without results in prac-
tice. There has been an introduction of scien-
tific gymnastics among the younger boys.
Germane to this is a system of physical mea-
surements and of medical inspection of all
new boys. In intellectual matters a great deal
of cautious experiment is going on in regard to
the curriculum ; large modifications have been
made to give scope to what is called specializa-
tion for the older boys. This has involved an
increase in the staff, and of course increased
expense. Meantime current controversies are
causing much thought and discussion on the
methods of teaching the older subjects, classics
and mathematics, especially the former, and at-
tempts are being made to restrict within practical
limits the aim of teaching Greek as well as Latin
to average boys. The difficulty in doing this is
considerable when a large number of masters are
concerned, but in general it may be said that
there is a great improvement in the adaptation of
methods and subject-matter to boys of different
intelligence. French is now taught almost
entirely by experts, and more time is given to
the subject than used to be the case, so long as a
boy learns it. But nothing in these matters can
at present be looked upon as final, since in addi-
tion to difficulties in the school there are perpetual
changes in outside examinations. The subject
of handicraft, as an alternative to book-work,
is being gently introduced, and music is given
more opportunity than it had. In regard to the
general tone of industry there has been an extra-
ordinary improvement in the last twenty years,
and part of the problem now is how to diminish
the strain on the younger boys, and on nearly all
the masters.
It is idle in a sketch of these dimensions to
attempt to sum up or gauge the growth of Eton
or its influence on England. To enumerate its
famous men would be to give a catalogue of the
most distinguished names in public life, and in
the Army and the Navy, and many other pro-
fessions. Such an enumeration is as impractic-
able as an attempt to estimate how much these
distinguished persons owed to Eton, and how
much to birth and nature. Suffice it to say
that throughout the century, as the largest school
in the country, recruited from the highest and
richest class, it has occupied the position of
facile princeps among the public schools which
was held in the i8th century by Westminster,
and before that was a matter of rivalry among
the three graces, Winchester, Eton, and West-
minster. In a century in which not less — even
more, perhaps — than in previous centuries the
governor-generalships and the great offices in the
State fell to the abler scions of great houses and
their associates, it is not so much surprising that
Marquess Wellesley, Governor-General in India
and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland ; the Duke of
Wellington and Earl Roberts, Commanders-in-
Chief wherever English blood was shed ; Fox
and Canning, Gladstone and Mr. Balfour, Lord
Rosebery and the late Sir Henry Campbell-
Bannerman, Prime Ministers, have issued from
Eton to the highest posts in civil or military life.
The wonder rather is that Eton has not monopo-
lized these posts altogether. More remarkable
is it that in the domain in which more than any
other success is influenced by no considerations
but those of the work itself, the domain of poetry,
Eton has produced the two greatest lyric writers
of the i gth century, Percy Shelley and Algernon
Swinburne. In the sphere in which achieve-
ment is due mainly to personality and strenuous
persistency, that of the law and the Church, Eton
has, as might be expected, been less successful ;
two Chief Justices, Denman and Coleridge, were
Etonians, but no Chancellor and no bishop or
archbishop of the first rank. But of late years
Eton has been as strenuous as other public
schools.
That the future historian may not complain
that the Eton day of the aoth century is un-
known, we will endeavour to set it down. The
normal school week consists of twenty-two hours.
For the SixthForm and First Hundred these hours
are allotted as follows : — Divinity, one hour ;
Latin and Greek, seven hours each ; English,
three hours ; while what are called extra studies,
which mean and include Mathematics, French,
German, Science, and Drawing, and various
specifications in Classics occupy the remaining
three hours. The hours are divided among the
days thus : Divinity, on Sunday (questions on
204
SCHOOLS
Scripture History, the Gospel in Greek, or a book
of the Septuagint) is given the place of honour ;
the first hour on Monday morning, from 7 to
7.50 — we are speaking of the Summer term,
1 908 — being devoted to going over with the mas-
ter what has been prepared, or supposed to be
prepared, on Sunday, difficulties discussed, and
explanations suggested. Religious instruction is
given on one morning of the week for fifty
minutes. On other days than Mondays Classics
occupy that hour, save on Thursday, when there
is a lecture on History. From 8 to 9.25 is devoted
to breakfast and preparation, the length of time
of one or the other being at the option of the in-
dividual. One of the strangest features of Eton
life until the last ten years was that, though the
charges for board and lodging were higher there
than at any other school, breakfast was not pro-
vided by the master, but by the boys at their
own expense, in theirown rooms. Even in college
the ' poor and needy scholar ' had to keep a room
up town in which to get his breakfast and live
during the day. Now, however, in all the houses
but one breakfast is provided in the boys' rooms,
mostly in messes of four. At 9.25 is chapel, a
shortened service. School begins at 9.45, and
lasts for fifty-five minutes, during which 'Extras,'
or extra studies, are done in form. Extra studies
is a charming instance of survival ' in nomencla-
ture. It meant, at first, extra subjects beyond
the ordinary purely classical curriculum, and the
list includes English (which includes History),
Mathematics, French, German, Science, Draw-
ing, and Spanish ; but it also includes, for the
bulk of the first 1 20, who are on what in more
modern schools might be called the classical side,
Greek play for the university, Plato, and Pindar.
Why Greek play, or Greek philosophy, or Greek
lyrics should have been considered extras in a
classical curriculum it is not easy to explain. At
1 1 o'clock school the ordinary Classics, that is,
construing of authors, resume sway, except on
Tuesdays, when the hour is devoted to History
in the form of doing questions on Monday's lec-
ture, and on Thursdays, when it is given to Latin
prose, which is, however, done out of school,
and shown up at lunch-time, 1.30. Classics
means in 1908, in preparation for the Higher
certificates of the Oxford and Cambridge Schools
Examinations Board, Livy's History, Book V ;
Virgil's Aeneid, X ; Horace's Odes, IV ; Thucy-
<lides III, 1-51, and Sophocles' Oedipus Coloneus.
History is the outlines of English History from
1714-1837, and more special study of thespecial
period, 1793-1815. English is represented by
two plays of Shakespeare, King Lear and
Henry V ; French by Le Cid of Corneille and
de Tocqueville's Quinze years au Desert and
Voyage en Sici/e. On three days in the week,
Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, there is no
more school after 12 ; but on all days from 12
to 1.30 is supposed to be devoted to work,
doing composition or preparation. Dinner is
at 1.30. After dinner there is practice at nets
for the professed cricketer, but no organized
games or practice for anyone else. On whole
school days there is school at 3.45 for 'Saying
Lesson,' or repetition of Latin verse learnt by
heart ; in Vlth Form, forty old and twenty new
lines, in First Hundred forty new, each day.
Those at the top of the form are free to depart
as soon as they have said their lines, while those
at the bottom learn theirs while the others are
saying them. The interval is spent in prepara-
tion. At 5 o'clock three-quarters of an hour's
school is devoted to Classics — on Monday to
Greek or Roman History, Wednesday to reading
in rooms, and Friday to Classics in school.
Reading in rooms is a theoretical pursuit not
carried on in actual practice if it can be avoided.
Those who belong to ' Pop.' go to ' Pop.,' and
do their composition or write letters there ; others
to school library, others to their house library.
Tea, which comprises bread and butter and jam,
is at 5.45. After it, till 8.30, comes the serious
business of pleasure, or rather exercise ; whether
to chase the rolling circle's speed for dry-bobs, or
to cleave with pliant oar the glassy wave for
wet-bobs, or practice at the butts for those who
prefer the leaden bullet. For those who do not
even strive for places in their house eleven or
in the boats there is no compulsion. At 8.30
comes supper, a moderate late dinner of two or
three courses, hot meat and pudding, and cheese
and butter. From 9 to 10 is a time for prepara-
tion, perforce in rooms or house library, and
lights are out at 10 p.m. Peace then attends
the wearied mind or body till the boys' maids
waken them to another day by setting out their
baths or bringing hot water (shades of Malim !)
at 6.15 a.m. The composition of the week,
done in the odd hours out of school, which, as
will have been seen, are more numerous than
the hours spent in school, consists of Latin verses,
which alternate between original theme and
translation, given out on Saturday, shown to
their tutor on Wednesday, and given up corrected
to the head master, or other form master, on the
Saturday following. Greek Prose and Verse,
a piece of each for translation from English, are
set on Wednesday, to be shown upon the follow-
ing Saturday morning. ' My tutor,' or rather,
in Etonian pronunciation, ' me-tutor,' is no longer
a third person, distinct alike from form master
and ' dame ' or other house-master, but is the
house-master ; though if the house-master is not
a classic and the boy is, or vice-versa, the function
of tutor is assigned to another master. But he is
not ' me-tutor.'
So far for the ordinary course for the
ordinary classical students. It would be a hope-
less task to pursue the specialist in all his ramifi-
cations. In the first 1 20 the specialists number
37 as against 84 ordinarians. Of them 14 are
205
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
scientists, 12 historians, 6 devote themselves to
modern languages, and 5 to mathematics. It is
significant that only two King's scholars are found
among them ; one in the Sixth Form and another
from the First Hundred. The Army Class of
29 boys contains only one King's scholar. The
next 120 contain a smaller proportion of special-
ists, namely 20. Below that, specializing is,
very properly, not allowed. If we descend to
the lowest division of the school — F, or the
Fourth Form, which is divided into Upper,
Middle, and Lower, and contains 1 1 6 boys, we
find the school hours number 25 instead of 22,
owing to their returning to school, or rather
pupil-rooms, at their houses at 2.15 instead of
3.45 in the afternoon. Their hours are given :
one to divinity, but the sacred fifty minutes on
Monday morning is spent not in school but in
pupil-room ; to Latin 6, to Greek 3, French 4,
English 3, Mathematics, which includes an
hour's drawing, 5, and Science 3. Their Greek
is learnt from a book called Sertum, a garland of
' flowers of Greek speaking ' consisting of short
pieces of prose and verse, the prose chiefly
anecdotes and the verse taken mostly from the
Greek anthology. Latin is pursued in Hardy's
Latin Reader and Ovid ; English History in
S. R. Gardiner's Outlines ; and French in
Guerber's Contes et Legendes. They are all
books of a calibre which the Eton boy of the
same age of the iyth or i6th century would
have regarded as fit only for babes and sucklings,
the petits of the Song School, not for boys of
fourteen or fifteen years old who had spent five
or six or seven years in ' grammar.' Not that Eton
is peculiar in this respect. For in all the schools
it is the same. In spite of all the talk about
education, childishness in subject and in thought is
prolonged to the verge of manhood. While the
contemporary of Milton or of Shakespeare or of
Chaucer would have been declaiming in Latin
on ' foreknowledge absolute,' or such high themes,
the Public School boy of the present day is learn-
ing a jingle of jargon to distinguish the gender
of from a brow from from a. leaf, or stumbling
through a story about the scholastic who cried
out on the boiling snails for singing when their
houses were burning.
True life for the average boy is not the time
spent in pupil-room or school, but in playing-
fields or on the river. In the Summer term, until
the Winchester and Harrow matches, the dry-bob
is bent on playing cricket in Junior Houses or in
getting his colours in Upper Choices or Twenty-
two or the Eleven. The great matches are
against Winchester, played originally at Lord's,
but since 1854 alternately at Winchester and
Eton, traditionally on either Midsummer Day or
St. Peter's Day and the day before or after, as
the calendar suited for Friday and Saturday ; until
1908, when the day was altered exceptionally to
3 and 4 July. This was disastrous for Winchester,
whose captain and three old ' Lord's men ' were
down with mumps, since against the residue Eton
compiled 410 runs, 'declared' with seven wickets
down, and won by an innings and 7 runs.
Harrow match is played at Lord's cricket ground
in London on the second Friday and Saturday in
July. In 1908, thanks largely to the weather,
which turned bad in the afternoon of the first day,
after Harrow had made 250 runs, Eton got out
for 37 runs, and only made 150 in the second
innings, and lost the match by nine wickets.
Harrow match being over, House matches fill the
time to the end of July, when the holidays begin.
For wet-bobs there are House Fours, in
which college is represented by two fours. The
first ambition is to get into Lower Boats, which
number altogether some fifty boys, including the
Lower Boat ' Choices,' about twenty ; then into
Upper Boats, who number twenty-seven, includ-
ing Upper Boat Choices and the Eight, which
represents the school at Henley. The Ladies'
Plate used to be regarded as Eton's peculiar
pride ; but sometimes it aims at the Grand
Challenge Cup, and in 1908 was only beaten
in the final tie by Christ Church, which rowed
head of the river at Oxford.
The great day at Eton, which has superseded
all Saints' days, which are now only holidays,
broken up and made useless by repeated
' absences,' or names callings, founders' days, and
' Montem,' is the ' Fourth of June,' the birth-
day of King George III ; not a very worthy
saint when we remember that he was the main
cause of the greater celebration of 4 July.
The Fourth of June gives eminent merit, both
intellectual and athletic, its chance of display.
After early school and an ornate chapel, the
morning is devoted to ' Speeches,' the last surviv-
ing relic or substitute for the ancient declama-
tions and disputations. The Sixth Form, singly
or in companies as their tastes may dictate,
deliver monologues, or dialogues, or scenes from
plays — Greek, Latin, French, German, or Eng-
lish. They are dressed in ordinary evening
dress, but with knee breeches and white silk stock-
ings. The speeches are followed by a cricket
match with New College, Oxford. At 5
o'clock comes the event of the day, which dis-
tinguishes the Eton Speech Day from those of less
fortunately situated schools — the Procession of
Boats. The boats which go in procession are-
not the racing eights of the present day, but
of a penultimate day. First goes the Monarch,
which consists of people high in the school, but
not distinguished oars, stroked by the Captain of
the Boats. Then follows the Victory, consisting
of the best oars, stroked by the second captain..
The third man strokes the Prince of Wales, and
so on for the Britannia, Thetis, Dreadnought,
Alexandra, Hibernia, and Defiance. The cox-
swains are resplendent in the admiral's dress of
Nelson's day ; the crews wear white ducks and
206
SCHOOLS
white-duck shirts with ribbons in front of the
distinguishing colour of the boat. The hats are
straw hats garlanded with ribbons and a sort of
gilded figure-head or crest in front. They row
up to Surly and dine there in state on the bank
of the river. At 8.30 they return in the same
order to Eton, where fireworks are displayed, and
as the boats reach the fireworks the crews stand
up and toss their oars in salute.
In winter St. Andrew's Day, 30 November,
is the great feast, when the wall game of foot-
ball between collegers and oppidans is played in
the morning, and a field game between Oxford
and Cambridge Etonians in the afternoon. The
wall game is played along the wall which bounds
the original playing fields, the goals being a door
in the wall at one end where it turns at right
angles, and a tree at the other. The forwards
on each side have their heads covered with sack-
cloth as they rub against the wall, trying to ' hot '
or push their opponents back to their own goal,
and the ' flies ' stand out prepared to kick the ball
out of the boundary line, as far towards the oppo-
site goal as possible, as soon as it emerges from
the scrimmage.
The small nation of Etonians, now at the
highest figure it has ever reached, 1,045, 's
domiciled in twenty-four houses of about forty
each, and college, which is ruled by a master in
college. They are taught by forty-seven masters,
of whom fifteen are teachers of mathematics,
five of science, ten of modern languages, one
teaching Italian, one gentleman essaying French,
German, and Spanish, the rest German or French
or both, some combining mathematics and a
modern language, or Classics and a modern lan-
guage. The ultima ratio in discipline is still
the birch, to which, though but sparely adminis-
tered, in comparison with the days of the ' best
beater in England,' or Keate, with his wholesale
executions, is still administered in the ancient
way, the victims being still personally con-
ducted to the head master by one of the two
prepostors for the week. The prepostors, who
used to be so numerous in Malim's day, are now
reduced to two, one colleger and one oppidan,
the Sixth Form taking it in turn to be in course
for a week. During that time they collect
absences from the form masters, take communi-
cations from the head master to them and bring
up the victims for chastisement, and are excused
schools in return. The ordinary discipline is
administered by the captain of each house, who
inflicts the extreme penalty of the law for offences,
often on reference by the house master, by a cane,
the culprit bending over to receive a ' smacking.'
In college the operation is termed 'working
it off.' For such offences as shirking football in
Michaelmas half or other game offences the cap-
tain of the games in each house exercises similar
jurisdiction.
The results of Eton education as exhibited at
the universities show that learning is assimilated
as effectually under its elastic system as in more
rigid systems. In 1906, for instance, a scholar-
ship, and a History scholarship at Balliol, two
scholarships at Christ Church, two at University,
and a demyship at Magdalen were won, with
a major scholarship at Trinity, Cambridge. In
1907 Etonians obtained scholarships at Trinity
and Brasenose, with the two great university
scholarships, the Hertford and Ireland, and the
Stanhope Historical Essay at Oxford ; and two
major scholarships at Trinity, one in mathe-
matics, five scholarships at King's, one at Gon-
ville and Caius, and the Chancellor's Medal for
English verse at Cambridge. Considering how
few Etonians seek the financial assistance afforded
by scholarships this record cannot but be acknow-
ledged as extremely good. That Eton should
flourish in learning as in other ways is therefore
something more than a pious aspiration. Floret
Etona.
THE ROYAL LATIN SCHOOL,
BUCKINGHAM
Buckingham Grammar School has been sadly
libelled. Carlisle1 in 1818, after imputing its
foundation to Edward VI, said : 'It is of little
note in any respect, none but the children of the
Lower Classes having been educated here, for
time immemorial.'
Those who have perused the history of schools
in the former volumes of the Victoria County
History will not need to be told that this state-
ment of the status and history of the Royal
Latin School of this ancient county town is
untrue. It is indeed strange that Carlisle should
without further inquiry have printed this per-
functory misrepresentation. For Browne Willis's
History of the Town, Hundred, and Deanery of
Buckingham, published in 1755, was at hand to
correct it, with a list of masters from 1553 who
were mostly dubbed M.A. It must, however,
be admitted that the good folk of Buckingham
have done their best to discredit their school and
to destroy its history, by destroying or losing
their municipal records.
There is, however, reason to think that the
school is of very great antiquity.1* From the
time of Edward VI to that of Edward VII it
was held in an ancient building, said to have
been the chantry chapel of St. John the Baptist
and St. Thomas, otherwise Thomas Becket,
which is stated* in a deed on the appointment of
a new schoolmaster in 1 830 to have been annexed
to the Trinity Gild. The Chantry Certificates
taken under the Chantries Act of Henry VIII do
not bear out this account. They connect the
chantry with the college of Aeon, the hospital
1 End. Gram. Schools, i, 47.
'* See p. 145, note I, for mention of schoolmaster
of Buckingham at Mich. 1423.
' Char. Com. Rep. «vii, 59.
207
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
founded in Thomas Becket's house in the city of
London, now the site of the Mercers' Hall.
The certificate,3 after giving an account of ' the
Brotherhood of the Trynytie and Our Lady '
with two priests, one to sing for the souls of
Henry VI4 and the brethren of the gild, and of
Barton's chantry, says :
Also there is one other chauntrey ... of St. John
the Baptist and St. Thomas of Aeon called Mathewe
Stratton chauntre. The revenues thereof is 69^. and
Thomas Hawkyns is incumbent there, and hath yerly
the profettes thereof for his salarye over and besides
37/. %<t. which he receyveth yerly of [blank in MS.] by
reason of the late house of St. Thomas of Aeon in
West Cheppe London as it is said.
The chantry, therefore, was worth £5 6s. 8d.
a year, which is rather above than below the
average of chantries, though the other chantry
priests in Buckingham got £6 a year each. It
was, at all events, more than the stipend of the
usher or lower master of Eton, which was only
£4 a year. Stratton's chantry was the oldest
chantry in Buckingham, having been founded by
Matthew Stratton, Archdeacon of Buckingham
from 1223 to 1268. The chantry chapel was
rebuilt by John Ruding, Canon of Lincoln and
Prebendary of Buckingham in that cathedral
from 1471 to 1481. Browne Willis says that
on the ceiling over the altar was to be seen a
painting of the Lamb of God, the usual emblem
of the Baptist, with his head on a charger under-
neath it; but it was destroyed in 1688, 'as a
relic of popery, by the schoolboys.' Underneath
was Ruding's motto, ' May God amende all,'
and his arms with crescents and scallop shells.
The chantry being reputed part of the foundation
of the hospital of St. Thomas of Aeon — which,
by the way, has nothing to do with Acre, as
commonly stated,6 but was merely the name of
a former owner of Thomas Becket's house — it
was suppressed with it by Henry VIII. The
chantry priest was pensioned, and the Land
Revenue Records 6 duly record the payment to
him of his pension up to 1565, first under the
name of John, but from 1550 under the name of
Thomas Hawkins, for celebrating divine service
in the chapel of St. John the Baptist.
The chantry not being reported on by the
later Chantry Commission under the Chantries
Act of Edward VI, we have no opportunity of
learning whether or not the chantry priest did,
3 Chant. Cert. 4, no. 9.
4 Because it received a licence in mortmain from
him ; Pat. 28 Hen. VI, pt. i ; cited in Browne
Willis, op. cit. 45. The document recited that the
fraternity had long been maintained in honour of
St. Romwald, but had no legal foundation, which
probably only meant that it was founded before the
Statute of Mortmain, and therefore had no licence
under that statute.
5 Carlisle, End. Gram. Sch. i, 47.
6 Land Rev. Rec. Accts. (Ser. i), bdle. 96.
either by the foundation or in fact, keep a gram-
mar school. But it seems extremely probable.
There are no documents at Buckingham among
the municipal records older than the Reforma-
tion, except two volumes of the Portmote or
Borough Court beginning towards the end of
the reign of Henry VII. They are almost ex-
clusively actions about small debts or petty tres-
passes with a few elections of ale-tasters and the
like. There appears to be no mention of the
school. There is, therefore, little chance of ever
proving any connexion between the old school,
which must have existed, and the present one.
According to Browne Willis and the deed of
1830, the present foundation is due to a bequest
of Dame Isabel Denton in 1540, to which
Edward VI added an annuity from the Ex-
chequer of £10 8s. o%d. This, if true in fact,
must have been due to one of the warrants of
the Chantry Commissioners for the continuance
of schools and preachers and other objects. But
the only Buckinghamshire warrant found does
not include it, and the Patent Rolls are silent.
Nor can the payment be traced in the Ministers'
Accounts. There seems to be little doubt that
Edward VI had nothing to do with it, and that
the Exchequer payment of £10 8s. originated
with the transfer from Thornton Grammar
School to that of Buckingham in 1592, as already
shown in the introduction to this article.
Browne Willis gives Henry Webster as the
first master, and says that he was curate here.
The register records his burial as Henricus Web-
ster, priest (sacerdos), on 29 June 1569. Alex-
ander Sheppard, master in 1574, became vicar of
Whitchurch in 1580 and of Buckingham in
1599. In the extant Borough Minute Book
he appears as an LL.B. and acting as ' commis-
sary or official of the peculiar and exempt juris-
diction of King's Sutton,' a will being proved
before him 2 April 1604. He afterwards took
the degree of D.C.L. from Jesus College, Oxford,
in 1609, and is described by Wood as 'a learned
civilian.' 7 Thomas Potter, described as M.A.,
succeeded Sheppard in 1580.
The Register of Gonville and Caius College,
Cambridge, shows the admission on 13 June
1591 of William Potter son of Thomas, at the
age of fourteen. He is said to have been born
at Buckingham, and to have attended school
there 'under Mr. Herl.' According to the list
of masters given in Lipscomb's County of Bucking-
ham, Thomas Potter was master from 1580 to
1594, when he was succeeded by James Smith,
and Richard Earle only became master in 1609.
If these dates are correct, Mr. Earle, or Herl,
must have been usher under Mr. Potter while
the young Potter was at school. James Smith
is, as we saw in the Introduction, under Thorn-
ton School, described as master of Buckingham
7 Carlisle, loc. cit.
208
SCHOOLS
School as early as 1592, when the Exchequer
payment to Thornton was transferred to him.
Potter seems to have been in the place and setting
up a rival and unlicensed private school, as in
1599* 'the Archbishop of Canterbury, John
Whitgift, issued an inhibition against him,' for-
bidding him to preach or teach school in the
town of Buckingham. James Smith, as we saw
under Thornton, continued master until the last
year of Queen Elizabeth. Then Robert Tom-
lyns, who is unknown to Browne Willis's or
Lipscomb's Histories, succeeded and held for six
years. He was followed in 1609 for half a year
by John Nichols, who was perhaps a resident in
Buckingham acting as a stop-gap, for he married
on 22 June 1622 a daughter of Simon Lam-
bert, then bailiff of the borough," and his burial
is recorded in 1646. Richard Earle we can put
back from 1617, the date given by Browne Willis,
to 1609. After nearly twenty years' tenure he
was discharged by the corporation for neglect of
the school in 1625. As he died vicar of Stow
in 1635, we may conjecture that the common
combination of a living at a distance with a
school had proved fatal to the good conduct of
the school.
The next master was Richard Home, who
had matriculated at Hart Hall, taken his B.A.
degree in 1621, and his M.A. in 1624. He
left in 1633, and became rector of Finmere,
Oxfordshire, and was succeeded by Thomas
Dutton, of Merton College, B.A. 1628, M.A.
1632. On 1 8 May 1638 the Corporation elected
Edward Ummant, M.A., as master. In 1645
he obtained the vicarage of Padbury, which he
held with the school, as his name appears as
master on 20 August 1639, when his wife was
buried. His name is given in the register as
Ummans. During the Commonwealth this,
like so many other grammar schools, so far from
being stopped or starved, as is generally, but
falsely, supposed or asserted, was well looked
after, and had its endowment increased. On
I February 1658 10 the Committee for Mainten-
ance of Ministers and Schoolmasters ordered
that 'the yearly summe of £10 bee graunted to
and for increase of the maintenance of the
schoolemaster of the freeschoole att Buckingham
. . . and that the same bee from time to time
paid unto such godly and able schoolemaster as
shall bee from time to time settled there.'
On I O February n ' the Trustees for mainten-
ance have thought fit to allow the augmentacions
herafter mencioned and have certified the same
for the approbacion of his Highnesse and the
Councell. ... His Highnesse and the Councell
doe approve the said augmentacions and order
' Browne Willis, op. cit. 8 1, quoting Cant. Archiepis.
Reg. Whitgift, fol. 112.
• Browne Willis, op. cit. 67, 69, 70.
'• Lamb. MSS. 1004, fol. 173.
" Ibid. 997 fol. 151.
that the sime be paid accordingly . . . To the
Schoolemaster of Buckingham Towne^io.'
The name of the master is unfortunately not
given. A master of the i8th century informed
Browne Willis that Ummant remained master as
well as vicar of Padbury and employed as ushers
Mr. Paine and Mr. Thompson and Mr. Stephens.
Thomas Stephens was licensed by the ordinary,
i.e. the bishop, as master on 19 March 1660.
' The great William Lowndes of Winslow,' says
Browne Willis, ' spoke much to me in his praise
and says that he quitted this for a greater school,"
and he ' bred up several good scholars ' — a suffi-
cient refutation of the libel in Carlisle. The
' greater school ' he went to was Bury St.
Edmunds,11 where he became famous.
On 10 October 1664 William Waiters was
appointed master, and in 1668 we find William
Warters,13 son of William, of Buckingham,
minister — Warters was then vicar of Bucking-
ham— matriculating at Balliol. As the master
from i October 1665 to 1682, Roger Griffiths,
was also a Balliol man, having matriculated in
1660 and taken his B.A. degree in 1664, we may
infer that the young Warters had been educated
in the school. Griffiths became vicar of Pad-
bury and held the living with the school. On
his death, Thomas Dalby, M.A., was elected
master on 16 January 1682, and held till he
became vicar of Wendover. Thomas Yeomans,
appointed in 1685, had taken his B.A. degree
from Brasenose in 1678. He went on to
Brackley Grammar School, in Northampton-
shire, one of the Magdalen College Schools,
in 1690. Mark Noble, who took his degree
from St. Alban Hall in 1686 and was curate of
Maids' Moreton, followed for two years. Robert
Styles, elected in 1692, 'having raised a very
good school here, to the great loss of the town
quitted it for Northampton School.' Among his
scholars at Buckingham were Mr. Backwell and
Mr. Justice Denton, both of whom afterwards
gave him benefices, in Tyringham and Preston.
This brings Carlisle's ' times immemorial ' to a
period of 120 years, even if no boys went later
to the university, which seems unlikely, as the
masters continued to be university men, largely
from Oxford. Thomas Ford, B.A., son of a
Buckingham alderman, was elected master on
21 October 1696 ; he afterwards became a pre-
bendary of Wells Cathedral. Samuel Foster,
M.A., vicar of Little Horwood, held the master-
ship from 1 7 May 1 709, when he got another
vicarage. Richard Card well, of Hart Hall, was
appointed in 1715. He became vicar of Thorn-
borough the next year. He held both places
till he became vicar of Raunds, Northamptonshire,
in 1723. Then he resigned both the master-
ship and the vicarage of Thornborough to
William Halsted, M.A., of Brasenose College,
"Scef.C.W. Suf. ii, 318.
" Foster, Alumni Oxon.
' 209
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
elected 29 July 1723. He was in 1735 also
vicar of Padbury. He held office for no less
than forty-one years. The only information
about the school derivable from the present
municipal records is furnished by the Borough
Minute Book14 about the next two masters,
though it shows that the appointment was en-
tirely in the hands of the local authority.
1764, 4 George III. Borough and parish of
Buckingham. The Rev. James Eyre, M.A., by and with
the assent and consent of the worshipful William
Butcher, esquire, Bailiff of the borough and parish
and the major part of the burgesses of the said
borough and parish whose names are hereunto sub-
scribed was elected and chosen a Schoolmaster of the
Free School in Buckingham aforesaid in the place
and stead of the Rev. Mr. William Halsted deceased.
James Eyre had matriculated at Met ton College
in 1753, took his B.A. degree in 1757 and his
M.A. in 1759. He held office for twenty-one
years. The following master, William Eyre,
was his brother, both being sons of 'Thomas
of Helmsdon, Northants ' ; who, in 1753 de-
scribed in the University Register as ' plebeian,'
in 1770 had risen to the description of 'gent.'
Eyre matriculated at Lincoln College 30 March
1770, took his B.A. degree in 1773 and his
M.A. in 1776. By this time the freedom of
the school had become restricted to 6 boys.
William Eyre's appointment, 17 August 1785,
was expressed to be as
schoolmaster of the Free School in the room of his
brother the Reverend James Eyre deceased . . . for
teaching and instructing 6 boys, natives of the said
parish, in Latin, writing and arithmetic gratis, as the
Bailiff and Burgesses, or any two or more of them
for the time being, shall for that purpose nominate
and appoint.
In the same year he became vicar of Padbury and
of Hillesden in 1816, both of which benefices he
held till his death in 1830, when his son
succeeded him in them and held till his death in
1868. It was apparently this conversion 'of the
school into a hereditary possession,' as an ap-
pendix to plurality in livings, which brought it
down. The endowment, fair enough in the
reign of Edward VI, had fallen to a negligible
quantity then, and it was only by holding it with
clerical preferment that an educated man could
be obtained. In i8i8,16 under William Eyre,
there were only six boys in the school, nominated
by the bailiff and burgesses, who were the
trustees, and they were taught English, writing,
and arithmetic. The master had a good house,
which was rebuilt after a fire in 1696 by
Alexander Denton.
On the appointment of Edward Brittin in
August 1830" an agreement was made between
him and the Corporation by which, in return for
14 Boro. Minute Bk. fol. i6ob.
15 Carlisle, End. Gram. Scb. i, 47.
16 Char. Com. Kef. xxviii, 59.
the annual stipend of j£io 8s. o\d. paid by the
Exchequer, and for the free use of the house and
school, he agreed to keep the premises in repair
and to teach six boys between the ages of eight
and fourteen Latin, English, reading, writing,
and arithmetic, without any remuneration what-
ever. He was allowed to take as many more
pupils as he liked up to 94. In 1833 he had
30 boys besides the 6 foundationers. In 1867,"
when the master was J. Owain Jones, no longer
a university man but a certificated teacher, there
were 28 boys in all, of whom two were boarders.
The non-foundationers paid ^4 41. a year, and
were all professedly learning Latin, but in fact
only received the necessary English education.
The average age of the highest boys was only
I2|. In 1871 Jones was succeeded by Thomas
Cockram, who spent £600 of his own money in
new buildings, and had to pay more than the
whole endowments, j£io a year, ' for the re-
moval of a nuisance close to the school.' By the
following year he had raised the number of boys
from 27 to 65, of whom 25 were boarders.
Appeal was made to the Endowed School Com-
missioners, but in the absence of local support
nothing could be done to help the school, which
languished on. A scheme of the Charity Com-
missioners of 14 January 1896 placed it with
other municipal charities under a representative
governing body. In that year Mr. Walter
Matthew Cox, educated at St. John's College,
Hurstpierpoint, and a B.A. of Trinity College,
Dublin, who had had experience of teach-
ing in Switzerland and Scotland, was appointed
master. At length, after the Education Act of
1902, the Buckinghamshire County Council
took the matter up, and agreed to supply the
school with a new site and buildings. A scheme
was made by the Board of Education 4 July
1904, annexing to it three small charities for
elementary education of about ^50 a year in all,
placing it under a new governing body, and
making it a mixed school for boys and girls.
The new building, of red brick in late Jacobean
style, stands on an imposing eminence above the
road leading from the railway station to the
town. It comprises excellent laboratories as
well as class-rooms.
The school has now seven masters and 65 boys,
of whom 35 are boarders, the boarding fees being
40 guineas a year, the tuition fee £6 to £10 a
year. There are six entrance scholarships. The
school is a centre for the Oxford University
Local Examinations.
ROYAL GRAMMAR SCHOOL,
HIGH WYCOMBE
This school seems to have been created in
155° out of the endowment of the Hospital of
St. John the Baptist. The hospital was founded
" Set. Inf. Rep. xii, 1 86.
210
SCHOOLS
some time before 1235 for a master, brethren,
and sisters.1 The Norman hall, of which there
are still remains, though one arch fell in Novem-
ber 1906, is of the architecture of about 1180.
There is not the smallest evidence that it ever
belonged to the Templars, as the so-called ' tra-
dition,' otherwise the invention of half-learned
antiquaries, has it, while the statement that it
belonged to the ' mendicant friars of the order of
St. Augustine ' is an absurd confusion of two en-
tirely distinct orders, the Augustine Canons who
first came into England circa 1 106 and the Augus-
tine Friars who made their appearance in the 1 3th
century. This hospital was probably originally
in the hands of the secular clergy, who were dis-
possessed, as at St. Bartholomew's and St. Thomas's
Hospitals, London, towards the end of the 1 2th
century in favour of Augustinian Canons. In
the 1 5th century the hospitals mostly had got
back again into the hands of the secular clergy.
St. John's Hospital, Wycombe, appears in the
Register of Bishop Thomas Bek of Lincoln as
in the patronage of the mayor and burgesses of
the town in 1344. In 1548* it was vested in
Christopher Chalfount, clerk, by virtue of his
office of master, and he granted it to Sir Edmund
Peckham and George Juncklyn on lease for
twenty-one years, at the rent of £8 a year. By
another indenture he disposed of his interest in
the hospital for his life to Sir E. Peckham rent
free. Under the will of George Juncklyn,
i April, 3 Edward VI,' Sir E. Peckham and
George Philyps, executors, bargained and sold
to the mayor, bailiffs, and burgesses of Chep-
ping Wycombe all the said hospital with the
lands and premises, to the intent that the said
mayor, bailiffs, and burgesses should bestow all
the yearly rents towards the foundation of a
grammar school, to be erected within two years
of the date thereof. In default the grantors were
to re-enter.
The borough records show that on 25 March
'55',
it was agreed first, the whoole howsc of the towne of
Chiping Wicombe to keepe the Hospital of St. John'i
with the appurte.iances therto belongings in the hole
hands of the towne, that ys to saye, Richard Carye,
tncn Mayor with all his brethren and the Burgesses,
to let and sett as they shall see cause in yt. And
moreover we be all agreyde to pay the stypende of £8
yerely to the said Scole Mayster. And we all gyve to
Mr. Peckham hartye thanks for his good wyll, and for
the appointing of the Scole Maister at his pleasure,
and we the hoole howse be agreide that the saide
Mr. shall have the pleasure and profile of a Cowe, or
twayne in ower Corney according to the custome of
the Towne, and alio to have 5 loodc of woode yerely.
At the Dissolution the hospital was valued at
{,1 '5'- Si^-jsothat the whole of the funds were
1 Dugdale, Mm. vi, 754.
1 Parker, Early Hist, of H'ycombe, 142, from deeds
belonging to the Municipal Charity Trustees.
1 1550 not 1548 as Parker (op. cit.) hat it.
devoted to the support of the school. The first
master appointed was the Rev. — Wrothe, but
the school probably was interrupted in its career
in the reign of Queen Mary, as she granted the
hospital to Sir Thomas Throgmorton.4 He could
only have held it for a short time, as on 1 8 July
1562 the mayor, bailiffs, and burgesses granted
the hospital and its lands and also the rents which
had belonged to the Fraternity of the Blessed
Mary, called the Lady Rents, to Queen Elizabeth.
On 2 1 July she re-granted them by letters patent
to the mayor and burgesses and their successors
for ever, for the support and maintenance of four
poor persons, and the remainder for the main-
tenance of one pedagogue or master, for the good
instruction of children and youth in the school
which was to be henceforth known as the Royal
Grammar School.
An inquisition * was held in 1617 as to the
property, when the grant by the queen of all the
hospital property to the maintenance of the
grammar school and four poor people was
confirmed.
From 1629 the borough records show a list of
the masters to the present day, beginning with
Gerard Dobson, vicar of Wycombe. He must
have been there for many years before 1629, as
Edmund Waller, the poet and politician, was his
pupil before going to Eton, and he entered King's
College, Cambridge, as a fellow commoner in
1620. 'He was bred under several ill, dull, and
ignorant schoolmasters, till he went to Mr. Dob-
son at Wickham, who was a good schoolmaster,
and had been an Eton scholar.'6 The next
master, Henry Wyat, appointed 1646, of Mag-
dalen College, Oxford, was rector of Bradenham.
In 1671 another rector of Bradenham, William
Lardner, was appointed r ' in place of Mr. Philip
Humfrey, deceased.' The latter having died
very poor, his successor was bound, on his election
by the Common Council, to pay to his widow,
Kathcrine, £10 in the course of the next two
years ' provided she doe not turne Quaker in the
mean time, or otherwise become a Sectary, and
not observe and obey the Liturgy of the Church
of England.' Lardner matriculated at Corpus
Christ! College, Oxford, 28 March 1655, took
his B.A. degree in 1658 and his M.A. in i66i.8
He was ejected from his rectory in 1670 ; after-
wards he conformed and was reinstated in 1672.*
H is successor was Howe, whose Christian name
is given as Joseph by Parker and Carlisle, but
he seems to be identical with Josias Howe, of
Grendon, Buckinghamshire, scholar of Trinity
College, Oxford, where he matriculated in 1633,
' Langley, Hist, of the Hund, of Detborough and the
Deanery of Wycombe.
' Petty Bag Inq. no. j, ' Chipping Wicombe.'
• Diet. Nat. Bug. from Aubrey's Brief Livei.
' Hiit. MSS. Com. Ref. v, App. 558.
1 Foster, Alumni Oxon.
' Carlisle, End. Gram. Sf&. i, 95.
211
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
and graduated as B.A. in 1634, M.A. in 1638,
B.D. in 1646. He was a fellow from 1637 to
1648, when he was, with other fellows and
scholars, removed for non-appearance before the
delegates appointed by the Parliamentary visitors.10
He was reinstated at the Restoration and held
his fellowship till his death, 28 August 1701.
He has attained the honour of a place in the
Dictionary of National Biography as a royalist
divine, having published a sermon preached before
the king at Christ Church, and Wood ll says
' his verses shew him to have been a good poet.'
He must, at least in his mastership at Wycombe,
have enjoyed a non-residential sinecure ; for the
Corporation, two days after his death, made orders
for the ' better ordering and governing of the
grammar school, and for establishing the stipend
of the master.' 12 The first order was that the
master ' shall constantly abide and dwell with his
family in the house belonging to the school,' and
that he shall not substitute or employ any other
person to teach the scholars without the consent
of the mayor and common council. Another
order was that the master should not demand of
any scholar, whose parents dwelt in the borough,
above is. on entrance and the same sum on leav-
ing. He was to receive £26 a year and a house
with a close adjoining, and to give a bond of
£100 to keep these orders faithfully.
The master appointed on these conditions in
1701 was Joseph Loveday, who had just taken
his B.A. degree at Gloucester Hall, now Wor-
cester College, Oxford. He remained six years,
becoming later rector of Hedsor in 1715 and
of Taplow in 1723. He was succeeded by
Samuel Guise, also of Gloucester Hall, who com-
bined various offices with his mastership, being
vicar of Thame in 1711 and chaplain to Philip
Duke of Wharton in ^ig.13 His successor in
1754, Thomas Heather, matriculated at Magda-
len Hall, Oxford, 2 December 1 746, and remained
eight years. In 1672 William Edwards, rector
of Tenby, the first of three successive Welshmen,
followed. Of these, the last, Daniel James, of
Carmarthen, who matriculated at Jesus College
in 1784 and took his B.A. degree in 1790, can
be traced at Oxford.
Mary Bowden, of Chepping Wycombe, by
will 27 September 1790, bequeathed £1,000 to
trustees to be invested in the public funds, or in
lands, from the profits of which £30 was to be
paid yearly to the Rev. Alban Thomas, the then
master and teacher of the Free Grammar School,
in augmentation of his salary, and to his suc-
cessors for ever, and to apply the remainder of
the profits for the benefit of such poor persons as
should live in, and be entitled to the benefit of,
the almshouse.14
10 H. E. D. Blakiston, Triu. Coll. 141.
11 Fasti Oxon. 56. " Char. Com. Rep. xxvi, 155.
18 Foster, Alumni Oxon.
14 Parker, Early Hist, of Wycombe, 149.
When Nicholas Carlisle 15 made his inquiries
into the school in 1818, the master was William
Sproston, appointed in 1793, and receiving £30
from the original endowment. He had a house,
in which he received boarders, but we are not
told how many there were. The schoolroom
was still part of the ancient building of St. John's
Hospital, and so remained till the present 20th-
century buildings were erected. Sproston was
still master in 1832," when there were 27 boys
on the foundation and two private pupils.
He took no boarders, though allowed to do so.
After Mrs. Bowden's gift in 1790 the master
was required to teach reading, writing, and
arithmetic in addition to the subjects formerly
prescribed. Only five boys were learning Latin
in 1832, and none Greek. The stipend was
then £70, £40 from the original endowment
and £2° from Bowden's Charity. In 1864 this
had been increased to £150 for the master and
jTjO for the assistant master, and fees in addition
as settled by scheme in 1856.
In 1867 there were 39 boys in the school,
two of whom were boarders, under the Rev.
James Poulter. He had one assistant master.
About half the boys learnt Latin, and six Greek ;
but no boy was over fifteen, and no boy had
gone to the university for five years before 1864,
though two had gone to Oxford since. There
were 10 free boys, nominated by the trustees ;
the rest paid fees of £2 2s. a year, and boarders
62 guineas, a rise of 22 guineas since 1818.
The assistant commissioner sent by the Schools
Inquiry Commission reported favourably of the
attainments and behaviour of the boys, but was
surprised to find that none of the trustees, who
were resident and chiefly of the professional class,
had sons at the school, though several sons of
professional men came from a distance.17
In 1906 there were 62 boys, of whom 12
were boarders, under Mr. George Wright Arni-
son, of Pembroke College, Cambridge, appointed
in April 1905, and three assistant masters. The
fees for day boys were from £6 to £8, and for
boarders from £44 to £50. The school build-
ings are designed for 120 boys, and 20 boarders.
As in 1907 the numbers had risen to 87, there
is every chance that the school will soon be full.
STONY STRATFORD GRAMMAR
SCHOOL
Michael Hipwell, of Stony Stratford, by will
i June 1609, directed that a public-house
belonging to him, called the ' Rose and Crown,'
should be let for a term of ninety-nine years,
and at the expiration of the term he bequeathed
the house, with all the barns, houses, and stables
" Carlisle, End. Gram. ScA. i, 94.
16 Char. Com. Rep. xxvi, 157.
17 Sch. Inj. Rep. xii, 188.
212
SCHOOLS
belonging to it to seven trustees and their heirs,
to apply the profits to the maintenance of a
schoolmaster, who was to keep a free grammar
school in the barn behind the inn. The chim-
ney, loft, and parlour at one end of it were to
serve as a house for the schoolmaster. Any
scholars of the town, or of the next towns
adjoining, who were minded to learn grammar,
or to write and cipher, were to be admitted and
taught their principles in religion.
The schoolmaster occupied a house and gar-
den rent free in 1832, receiving a salary of
about £17, and also an entrance fee of is. from
each scholar. He taught about 80 boys from
Stony Stratford, Wolverton, and Calverton in
reading, writing, and arithmetic, and gave them
religious instruction. In 1867 there were 90
scholars, paying id. a week, under one master
and four unpaid monitors. In 1903-4 the
school, with three departments, had an average
attendance of 319.
AMERSHAM GRAMMAR SCHOOL
Robert Challoner, D.D., rector of Amersham,
by will 20 June 1620, granted out of lands in
Wavendon 'a yearly stipend of £20 for a
schoolemaister in the free Grammer School in
Knarisburrough in Yorkshir, and the like yearly
som of £20 out of the lands in Wavendon to
my wellbeloved friends Mr. William Tothill,
esq.' and others
to erect a free Grammer Schools in Amersham in the
county of Bucks, to be established by dcede of feof-
ment or otherwise as their wisdomes cann devise, the
towne and parish allottinge theire chimhhovvsc for
the jchoolchowse, or my successor a tenement in the
occupation of Enoch Wyer, now or late, for the
dwellinghowse of the Schoolemaister, whom I will
to be chosen by my executors, my successor and
Mr. Tothill, and afterwards by my successors and 6
of the eldest feoffees and chiefest. . . . Orders for
the schoole I desire my successor to procure from the
best ordred Schoole.1
The town and parish had allotted the church-
house for aschoolhouse on 12 September, and the
succeeding rector the tenement for the school-
master on 14 September 1624, but we have no
information as to what school the successor chose
for his model as the ' best ordred.' Dr. Chal-
loner died I May 1621. At an inquisition
under the statute of Charitable Uses held at
Missenden 16 September 1624 it was found
that the annuity not having been paid for the last
three years, arrears of £60 were due. But
Thomas Day, husband of the founder's daughter
Ellen, had lately, without the knowledge of the
trustees, paid £10 to Mr. Edward Rayner,
schoolmaster.
1 Petty Bag. Inq. 22 Jas. I, no. 7.
The Commissioners therefore decreed that
the arrearages amounting to £50 should be
'ymployed and bestowed in and for the repayr-
inge and amcndinge of the schoolehouse, found
by the inquisition to be appoynted there, and
also for the repayringe of the said house appoynted
for the habitation of the schoolemaister,' and that
the yearly sum of £20 should in future be paid
regularly for the wages and maintenance of an
able and sufficient schoolmaster. They declared
that the school should be for ever thereafter a
free school for the education, institution, and
instruction of children and youths within the age
of eighteen years, as well poor as rich, inhabiting
within the said parish of Amersham or in any other
place whatsoever, and be called ' the Free School
of Robert Challoner, Doctor of Divinity, late
rector of the parish church of Amersham in the
county of Bucks.'
Mr. Angel, probably the next master, is
known to have sent a boy to St. John's College,
Cambridge,' as a fellow-commoner in March
1648-9, the son of Sir John Henden, kt., of
Biddenden, Kent, so that the school must at
that time have been of good repute. Angel was
followed before 1651 by Humphrey Gardiner.
This appears in an inquisition held in 1674,
when steps had again to be taken to enforce
payment of the annuity. Interrogatories * were
administered to witnesses by James Perrot, esq.,
on behalf of the free school, against Gifford Bale,
George Wells, and others, who were excepting
to the decree made fifty years before. The
depositions were taken at Newport Pagnell on
27 January 1674-5. The first witness, Na-
thaniel Wingfield, mercer, swore that, being one
of the churchwardens, in the year 1651 he 'did
receive of John Wells, father of George Wells,
one of the exceptants, who had bought part of
Challoner's lands, £10 101. for that year's pay-
ment for the use of the said poore of Amersham,
and did see Humfrey Gardiner, gent., now one
of the Commissioners (being the schoolemaster of
the said free schoole) receive of the said John
Wells £20 for that year's payment to the free
Schoole.' Many other witnesses gave testimony
to the same effect. The depositions ended
abruptly. A decree was made on 14 June
1675, confirming the decree of 1624 and set-
ting out the exact land charged. To avoid
further disputes these lands were bought and
conveyed to trustees by deeds 12—13 June 1676
by Gifford Bale and his son.
In 1790 the Rev. Richard Thorne was mas-
ter, when there were 1 2 boys,4 but in the first
quarter of the igth century there were never
more than 4. Carlisle* in 1819 incorrectly
gives the endowment as of lands at Waddesdon,
1 ddm'usioni to St. John's Coll. pt. i, 91.
1 Petty Bag Dep. no. 10.
4 Char. Com. Rep. xxv, 8.
4 Carlisle, End. Gram. Sch. i, 44.
213
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Bedfordshire. The master was then the curate
of Amersham, and lived in the house belonging to
the school, but there were no scholars. In 1823
the Rev. Henry S. Ingster was appointed head
master, and held office for three years. On the
appointment of a new master, the Rev. Matthew
Stalker, in 1826, the trustees made rules for the
government of the school.6 The attendance of
the master was strictly enjoined ; he was for-
bidden to discharge his duties by deputy. He
was allowed to take private pupils in the school-
room, but on the significant condition that no
distinction was made between them and ' the
children of our own establishment.' He was to
live at the house in the High Street appropriated
for the purpose, and to keep it in repair at his
own expense. Nothing was to be charged for
the education of any scholar, but the parents
were to pay for fuel and for keeping the room
clean. No details are given of the curriculum,
only Latin and Greek being mentioned. In
April 1832 there were only six boys. When
Stalker first came, his son taught mathematics
besides the other branches of an ordinary educa-
tion, and was very successful, as 1 4 boys came ;
but after his son died, in 1830, the numbers fell.
Only Latin and Greek were taught free, other
subjects being paid for by the parents. The
Rev. W. H. Williams, B.A., Oxford, was head
master when the school was visited by Mr.
T. H. Green, afterwards White's Professor of
Moral Philosophy at Oxford, for the Schools
Inquiry Commission in 1 864.' There were
then 22 boys, five of whom were boarders, pay-
ing from £37 to £42 a year, according to age.
They were all learning Latin, only four Greek ;
but the boys were very young, only two being
above thirteen.
A new scheme under the Endowed Schools
Acts was approved by Queen Victoria in Council
on 15 May 1900. The endowment then con-
sisted of land in Wavendon producing £75 a
year, and of about £200 stock. The scheme con-
stituted a representative governing body of eleven
members, appointed by the Parish and Rural
District Councils of Amersham, the Urban Dis-
trict Council of Chesham, and the Buckingham-
shire County Council, and one by the rector, and
three co-optatives, all Tyrwhitt Drakes, the
Drakes of Shardeloes having been connected with
the charity from the conveyance in 1676. The
head master was, and still is, Mr. Ernest Henry
Wainwright, M.A., of St. John's College, Cam-
bridge, where he took his B. A. degree in 1 897, the
year in which he was appointed master of this
school. The scheme threw the school open togirls
as well as boys, but want of space prevented its
proper development. New school buildings were
opened in September 1905, and it was made a
pupil-teacher centre. There were then 80
pupils, in 1907, 94. They pay fees of 9 guineas
a year. The Cambridge Local Examinations
set the standard of instruction. There are two
assistant masters, three assistant mistresses, and a
visiting art master.
SIR WILLIAM BORLASE'S SCHOOL,
MARLOW
Sir William Borlase, of Medmenham, kt., in
1624 built a schoolhouse in Great Marlow, and
started a school there, which, by will 28 October
1628, he endowed with lands in Buckinghamshire
and Oxfordshire, from the profits of which £12
was to be paid annually to a schoolmaster to
teach 24 poor boys to ' write, reade and cast the
account in writeinge.' l When they can do this,
'which I conceave in 2 years they will bee ready
to doe,' 401. was to be allowed to each for ap-
prenticing. The boys were given a blue gown
and cap when appointed. The school was an
elementary charity school, and so continued until
it was reorganized as a secondary school by a
scheme under the Endowed Schools Acts ap-
proved by Queen Victoria in Council 20 Novem-
ber 1880. This scheme created a governing
body of twelve, of whom eight were co-optative,
and one representative of the county justices,
two of the vestry, with the lord of the manor of
Davers ex officio. The tuition fees were fixed
at from £3 to £6 a year, and the boarding fees
at £35 a year, with twelve foundation scholar-
ships, open to boys in elementary schools in
Great Marlow, Little Marlow, and Medmenham.
New buildings were erected, and the school re-
opened as a grammar school in 1881, under the
Rev. Michael Graves, B.D., Durham. After
being an assistant master at Louth Grammar
School, and head master of Barrow Grammar
School, Leicestershire, he was, when appointed
to Marlow, vice-principal of the Lincoln Diocesan
School, and curate of St. Mary Magdalen, Lin-
coln. In his hands the school met with instant
success, the numbers rising rapidly to about 150,
of whom nearly i oo were boarders. From this
point it somewhat declined, but when Mr. Graves
retired to the vicarage of Turville in 1896 he
left about 100 boys behind him. The second
master, Mr. Clark, succeeded to the head-mas-
tership. At the end of six years there were
only some 20 boys. Mr. Edward Henry
Blakeney, a Westminster boy and exhibitioner of
Trinity College, Cambridge, who had been for
five years successfully resuscitating Sandwich
Grammar School, came in 1901. He raised the
school to 67 boys by 1903. Some £1,700 was
spent on science laboratories, an art room, and
workshop, and the modern as well as the classical
6 Lipscomb, County of Bucks. (1831), lii.
7 Sc6. Inj. Rep. xii, 176.
Petty Bag, Inq. no. zi, Great Marlow, 1631.
214
SCHOOLS
side was developed. In 1904 Mr. Blakeney was
tempted away to Ely Cathedral Grammar School,
and carried offseveral membersof the staff and some
boys with him. The head master now is the
Rev. Albert James Skinner, educated at Oundle
School, and B.A. of London University. He
was, when appointed in September 1904, a
science and house master of Reading School.
He has a staff of three resident masters and two
non-resident. The science and modern side is
being more strongly developed. There were 60
boys in the school in 1906, of whom 30 were
boarders, the fees being £9 15*. for day boys and
£54 for boarders.
AYLESBURY GRAMMAR SCHOOL
From the pleadings in a suit in Chancery,
begun in 1715, we learn that two messuages,
probably the gift of Sir Henry Lee of Ditchley,
Oxfordshire, were, before 1687, vested in certain
trustees, of whom the Vicar of Aylesbury was
one, for the support of this school. The school-
master was paid in 1714 partly from the rents
of these houses, and partly by fees from parents.
The school, as a part of it was for more than 1 40
years afterwards, was then carried on in a room
adjoining the church, supposed to have been
formerly a chantry chapel. The names of some
early masters have been preserved.1 They were
all vicars or curates of Aylesbury : Obadiah
Dumea, 1678; John Higgins, 1680 ; John
Slime, 1 68 1 ; Ralph Gladman,8 1692, who
came from St. Albans, matriculated at Christ
Church 3 August 167 7, and took his B.A. degree
in 1681 ; and Decimus Reynolds, whose date
is not known.
The school received a second endowment
from Henry Phillips * of London, who, by will
22 September 1714, proved 24 November
following, bequeathed £5,000 to buy lands in
Buckinghamshire for the further enlargement of,
and provision for, the Free School, for instructing
so many of the poor boys in Aylesbury and Wal-
ton as his executors should appoint, and for want
of a sufficient number from those parishes, then
from the next neighbouring parishes. They
were to be instructed in the Latin tongue,
writing, arithmetic, and accounts, so as to be fit
to go and be apprenticed to good trades. Lands
to the value of £5,409 were duly conveyed,
3-4 June 1715, to the executors. The Master
in Chancery, in reference thereto, reported,
20 March 1717, that the existing schoolhouse
was unfit for a school, and incapable of being
enlarged. So in 1718 a new school and master's
house were built on the south side of the church-
1 Lipscomb, Hist, of Biuki. ii, 65.
' Foster, Alumni Oxott.
1 Char. Com. Rep. xxvi, 36.
yard, and conveyed to the trustees by deeds of
13-14 September 1737.
By a decree of the court 4 February 1720,
rules and ordinances were established for the
government of the school : —
Imprimis : That there shall be 120 boys admitted
into the said school, to be taught gratis, and to be
furnished with books, pens, ink and paper gratis.
2. That there shall be appointed one schoolmaster
and one usher for teaching the said boys in reading
English, Latin and Greek ; and also one writing-mas-
ter for teaching and instructing the said boys in writing
and accounts ; the which said schoolmaster and usher,
and also the writing-master, shall attend their respec-
tive duties in the said school at least 10 hours in every
week day not being holydays.
The masters were to be appointed by the
trustees, and were removable for neglect of duty
by two-thirds of them. They were to receive
no gift or profit from any of the boys or their
parents, but only the salaries appointed by the
trustees ; but the head master might teach, for
his own profit and advantage, in Latin, Greek,
and Hebrew only, so many other scholars as the
school was capable to receive, not exceeding 20,
and so as the free boys should not be prejudiced
or neglected thereby. Children might be ad-
mitted at five years of age provided they could
read.
The Rev. John Stephens was appointed head
master in 1744. He had matriculated at Exeter
College,4 Oxford, 19 March 1729-30, and was
a fellow from 1732 to 1762. He took a B.D.
degree in 1748, and became D.D. in 1761. He
remained at Aylesbury till his death in 1771.
He was succeeded by the Rev. W illiam Pugh, who
was curate of Aylesbury and also vicar of Tot-
ternhoe, Bedfordshire. His work in the school
was probably done by William Storkins,* who had
been educated there, and after being clerk to a
carrier in -the town, came as assistant, and in
1776 was made head master. He was admitted
B.A. of Jesus College, Oxford, in 1780, arjd
appointed curate, but soon resigned the curacy.
He was domestic chaplain to Sir William Lee,
bart., of Hartwell House, whose younger son,
George Lee, afterwards baronet, was educated
in the school. Storkins resigned in 1806, when
a former pupil, John Rawbone, succeeded him ;
but on his death in 1813 Storkins was rcap-
pointed, retiring again in 1817. Then Charles
Robert Ashfield became head master. He matricu-
lated at Brasenose College,0 Oxford, 19 October
1808, and took his B.A. degree in 1812. He
was instituted to the rectory of Dodington,
Somerset, in 1821, and in the same year was
appointed chaplain of the County Gaol in Ayles-
bury. On 24 September 1825 the trustees ordered
4 Foster, op. cit.
* Lipscomb, Hiit. of Buckt. ii.
* Foster, op. cit.
215
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
that the number of boys in the Latin school
should be increased from 15 to 20, and in the
lower school reduced to 100 ; and on I April
1826 that the boys in the upper school should
be taught reading, writing, and arithmetic as
well as Latin. Ashfield resigned in 1830 and
was succeeded by the Rev. Benjamin Robert
Perkins, of Lincoln College, Oxford. He took
his B.A. degree in 1824, when he was appointed
chaplain at Christ Church, which office he held
till his appointment at Aylesbury. He did not
live in the head master's house, as it was not
large enough to admit private pupils, but ob-
tained permission of the trustees to have an
under master, who should live in the head
master's house and be paid by Mr. Perkins him-
self, while he lived at Cublington, of which he
was curate, seven miles away, and afterwards at
Wotton under Edge, Gloucestershire, of which
place he had been vicar from 1829. This
vicarious arrangement worked so far, that the
school was full in 1833. The Latin and English
schools were then separate. Education at the
English school gave no title to admission to the
Latin school, but the applicants, of whom there
were 50, were chosen with reference to parent-
age, capacity, progress in Latin, and their future
destination. Mr. Perkins resigned in 1837, on
his appointment to the mastership of the school
at Wotton under Edge. His successor was
John Grant Lawford, M.A., of Wadham Col-
lege, Oxford, who only stayed three years, the
Rev. Frederick Cox, M.A., of Lincoln College,
Oxford, being appointed in 1840. He was
perpetual curate of Upper Winchendon, Bucking-
hamshire, from 1821 till his death in 1879.
In 1862 a scheme of the Charity Commis-
sioners under the Charitable Trusts Acts divided
the school into Upper and Lower schools. In
the Lower school only elementary instruction
was given, and no fee was paid. In the Upper
Latin and Greek were taught, and the boys paid
£6 6s. a year, unless they had procured exhibi-
tions from the Lower school by examination,
when they were exempt from fees. There were
28 boys in 1867, of whom nine were exhibi-
tioners. They were all young, the highest boys
being only 14. The head master was the Rev.
Alfred William Howell, M.A., of Worcester
College, Oxford, appointed in 1864.
By a scheme of the Board of Education, made
under the Charitable Trusts Acts, 2 July 1903,
the Rev. Christopher Ridley, the head master,
and Walter Cranley, the writing-master, were
pensioned off with £4.0 and £25 a year respec-
tively, and the Lower school was abolished. The
single school was declared to be a Public Secon-
dary School (a term which includes every school
above the elementary school and below a univer-
sity college) for boys and girls, at tuition fees of
from £6 to £10 a year. Greek is only to be
taught to those whose parents ask for it in
writing. Ten to twenty foundation scholarships
were established, consisting in exemption from
tuition fees, to be awarded by competition equally
among boys and girls from public elementary
schools in Aylesbury and Walton, or, failing
them, in certain neighbouring parishes. A re-
presentative governing body was constituted,
four members to be appointed by the Bucks
County Council, four by Aylesbury Town
Council, and one by the Hebdomadal (or weekly)
Council of Oxford University, with eight co-op-
tatives, of whom, to look after the interests of
the girls, as the school is to be a mixed school,
two must be women. New buildings have been
erected, to the cost of which the County Council
contributed ,£1,750, on condition of having the
use of them for evening classes and the like out
of school hours. Mr. Thomas Osborne, M.A.,
of Marcon's Hall, Oxford, formerly an assistant
master in the school, is head master, with two
assistant masters. In 1907 there were 70 boys.
WYCOMBE ABBEY SCHOOL
Though not perhaps strictly an endowed
school, yet as practically a public school for
girls, Wycombe Abbey School cannot be passed
over without notice, dubbed as it is by its friends
and admirers the Eton of girls' schools. Like
Eton, it has resorted to Winchester for the first
chairman of its governing body in the person of
Dr. H. M. Burge, head master of Winchester
College. It is the second public school for girls
in the British Isles, using that term in the limited
sense it has now acquired of a large school wholly
or chiefly for boarders of the richer classes,
St. Leonard's School at St. Andrews being the
first. It is in fact the creation of enterprise,
being the property and product of the Girls'
Education Company, Limited, formed 25 Feb-
ruary 1896, with a nominal capital of £30,000,
divided into 3,000 shares of £10 each. Among
the first subscribers were Dr. Butler, master of
Trinity College, Cambridge, and his wife, cele-
brated when Miss Ramsay as beating the senior
classic at Cambridge in the Tripos, and the
Countess of Airlie. The company pitched the
tents of its first and only school in Wycombe
Abbey at the end of July 1896.
Wycombe Abbey was formerly the manor
house of Loakes Manor. It was entirely rebuilt
about 1790 by Robert, first Baron Carrington.
It is a large and handsome mansion of brick,
faced with stone, built in a late Gothic style,
according to designs by James Wyatt. In 1891
a large hall adjoining it was built by the present
Earl Carrington. It is a fine room 120 ft. in
length, and the old oak Shelburne family pew,
which was turned out of the parish church about
1866, was built into the end wall, and forms a
very striking feature of the room. This hall is
216
SCHOOLS
now used as Big School, and the old armoury has
become the workshop, where carpentry and
carving are taught. The carriage house, the
only fragment of the older manor house left, is
used as a boat-house and bicycle shed, and the
saddle-room is now the school shop, where all the
special clothing required is to be obtained. The
buildings extend round four courtyards. Hand-
some rooms open on to the south-west and
south-east terraces. One of these, a most
attractive room, is the library, 44ft. by 23ft.
Another, 46 ft. by 21 ft., is the Rubens House
Study. Over the library is the Pitt suite of
rooms, where four Prime Ministers have slept —
Mr. Pitt in 1803, Mr. Disraeli in 1848, Mr.
Gladstone in 1876, and the Earl of Rosebery in
1884.
The head mistress is Miss J. F. Dove, M.A.
of Girton College, Cambridge, who passed in
the Natural Science Tripos in 1874, and came
from the head-mistress-ship of St. Leonard's
School, the great girls' school at St. Andrews,
which she resigned in order to found a similar
school in England. In eight weeks' time the
place was converted from a nobleman's residence
into a school, and on 27 September 1 896 it opened
with forty girls and a large resident staff of
mistresses. Structural alterations under the direc-
tion of Mr. W. D. CarOe, F.S.A., architect to
the Ecclesiastical Commissioners, were begun in
the Christmas holidays. To enlarge the dining
room, the writing room next to the old chapel,
an unconsecrated building, was thrown into it,
the two together making a capital and well-
ventilated room, 48 ft. by 25 ft. Bath rooms
had to be constructed out of some of the bed-
rooms. From December 1896 to December
1 900 workmen were constantly on the premises.
A wing containing six school rooms, including
a very good studio, was completed by January
1898 ; the lower part of this wing had formerly
been a kitchen, brew-house, and mangle-room.
Part of the stables were altered into music
rooms. By June 1898 the gymnasium, also
constructed out of a part of the stables, was
built and fitted with Swedish apparatus. During
the work the men had found and opened out
in the dormitory a beautiful old rose window,
which had been completely bricked up. Ac-
commodation was provided for 100 boarders.
A picturesque feature is the Dyke, which in
1898 was partially drained and then cleaned out
down to the natural gravel bottom and refilled.
To drain it completely was found impossible, as
the bottom of it is full of natural springs.
By September 1898 the first of the outside
houses, Barry, so called after Sir John Wolfe
Barry, one of the vice-presidents of the council,
was ready for occupation. The foundation stone
had been laid by Miss Dove on 24 March. On
15 December the foundation stone of Butler
House was laid by Mrs. H. M. Butler, and on
28 February 1 899 the Lady Airlie laid the founda-
tion stone of Airlie House. Campbell House was
occupied on 3 May, though its foundation stone
was not laid until 16 May, for it had to wait for
its eponymous heroes Lewis Campbell, formerly
Professor of Greek at St. Andrews University,
and his wife to return to England from a winter
in Italy.
In 1 900 the Clock Tower was built. A very
complete sanatorium, with wards in which four
kinds of disease can safely be nursed at one time,
and which includes a house for the resident
medical officer and the nurse, was ready for use
by January 1901.
In September 1901 a junior school was started
in Loakes House. By May 1902 it was removed
to Godstowe on the Amersham Hill, about a
mile from the abbey.
Dyke Meadow is used chiefly for gardens for
the girls. The whole area of the school ground
is 36 acres, which gives ample space for cricket,
lacrosse, hockey, golf, tennis, archery, gardening,
boating, and other recreations.
By September 1899, just three years from the
opening, the limit of numbers, 200, was reached,
and a record established in the matter of school
growth. The fees are from £105 to £120
a year. The head mistress presides over the
Abbey House, with four house tutors under
her, and there are four other house mistresses.
Including visiting mistresses for dancing, music,
fencing, and bookbinding, there are thirty-
three assistant mistresses. The school has at-
tained first classes at the universities in such
diverse subjects as Medieval and Modern Langu-
ages, Tripos Cambridge, Theology, and Modern
History at Oxford.
THE COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL FOR
GIRLS, HIGH WYCOMBE
The Education Committee of the Bucks
County Council established this school in Sep-
tember 1901. It was at first carried on in the
Science and Art School, but its numbers rose so
rapidly that other premises had to be obtained. An
iron building was put up on the ground adjoining,
and some classes were held in another house. In
1905 a new site was acquired on the hill behind
Priory Road, and one and a half acres were
bought from Earl Carrington for £450. Here
the present buildings were erected from the plans
of Mr. Arthur T. Greenwood, of Manchester,
at a cost of £5,005, including the price of the
site. Of this the County Council contributed
£3,000, and the Town Council found the
rest.
There is an assembly room, 60 ft. by 23 ft.,
seven class-rooms, a laboratory, and a gymnasium,
as well as mistresses' rooms and ample offices.
The new buildings were formally opened by Earl
217
28
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Carrington on 24 November 1906. They were
designed for 175 pupils, and there were 145 in
February 1907. The head mistress, Miss Mary
Christie, M.A., has a staff of seven assistant
mistresses as well as one visiting mistress, and a
visiting master for art. The girls are prepared
for the Oxford Local and London Matriculation
Examinations. The fees are 6 guineas a year.
WOLVERTON COUNTY SCHOOL
This is a mixed school for boys and girls
started by the Education Committee of the County
Council in January 1902, under Mr. L. H.
Leadley, B.A., B.Sc., as head master. Ill-health
compelled his resignation, and he was succeeded
in January 1906 by Mr. E. J. Boyce, B.Sc.,
London. He has a staff of three masters and two
mistresses, besides visiting teachers. There are
some 80 pupils, the numbers of boys and girls
being about equal ; among them are from 12 to
2O who hold scholarships from the elementary
schools, as well as pupil teachers. The fees for
paying pupils were formerly 5 guineas a year,
but are now 6.
ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS, FOUNDED BEFORE 1800
BEACHAMPTON. — William Elmer, of Beach-
ampton, by will, 3 January 1648, conveyed
estates to trustees, who, after his wife's death,
were to erect a schoolhouse, containing three
bays of building, and appoint a sufficient man,
being a good scholar and single, to be school-
master, to teach all children who should resort
to him in the English and Latin tongues, and
to write and cast accounts. He was to take no
bribes of his scholars or their friends, but he
might charge id. as an entrance-fee. The rent
of the school land in 1832 was ^48 5*. The
master had from forty to sixty boys in attendance,
who learnt the three R's free of charge and a
few girls who paid. The education was still
elementary in 1867, when there were 43 scho-
lars, four of them boarders at 20 guineas a year.
This school appears to be the Beachampton
Church of England school, which had an average
attendance of 47 children in 1903-4, the last
year for which the Board of Education gives
complete statistics.
IVER. — A board in the church, apparently put
up in 1688, states that Robert Bowyer, late of
Huntsmoor, in this parish, gave the yearly sum
of jT2i iu. <}\d., in fee-farm rents in Dorset,
for ever, for maintaining a schoolmaster to teach
7 O
the children of poor people in the village to read
and write. An indenture of 28 October 1822
recites that the parties to it and two unknown
benefactors had subscribed certain sums amount-
ing to ^490, of which £280 had been spent in
repairing and enlarging the school, and directs
the remainder to be invested for the education
of poor children in the principles of the Church
of England and the three R's, and for the
salary of the schoolmaster. Twenty boys were
educated free, and in 1833 there were 40 more
paying id. a week each. In 1867 there were
55 boys at a fee of id. a week. The school is
now merged in the Iver Council School, which
in 1903-4 had an average attendance of 350
children.
AMERSHAM : LORD CHEYNE'S WRITING
SCHOOL. — By indenture of i January 1699,
William Lord Cheyne granted to trustees a
yearly rent of ^20 on land in Amersham for
the maintenance of a schoolmaster to teach
children of the parish writing and arithmetic. On
the appointment of new trustees in 1717, Lord
Cheyne extended the privileges of the school to
the children of Chesham Bois. The school was
carried on in a room adjoining the grammar
schoolroom in the Church-house, which was
kept in repair by the churchwardens. The
average number of boys was 30 in 1832. They
paid 3^. a week for reading and spelling,
writing and arithmetic being taught without
charge, except id. a week for pens and ink.
There were 76 boys and 80 girls in the school
in 1867. It is now merged in St. Mary's
Church School with an average attendance in
1903-4 of 258 children.
GREAT LINFORD. — Sir William Pritchard, by
his will in 1702, devised to the minister and
churchwardens of Great Linford a yearly rent-
charge of £34, of which j£io was to be paid to
an honest person to teach reading to as many
poor children of the parish as the trustees should
nominate. Lady Pritchard, who died 23 April
1718, gave by her will a yearly sum of £"J ids.
for apprenticing boys from the school.
The schoolhouse was in the same range of
buildings as an almshouse, founded by the same
benefactors. In 1832 the schoolmaster taught
about thirty boys to read gratuitously, the
parents paying id. a week for firing. The alms-
house and school had occasionally to be shut up,
to enable funds to accumulate for repairs.
There were only 20 boys in 1867. Under a
scheme of the Charity Commissioners, 17 July
1886, the charity was made applicable for
apprenticeships and prizes and for encouraging
children to prolong their education at elementary
schools.
STOKE HAMMOND. — John Hillersdon, on
16 September 1707, granted a yearly rent-charge
of ^5 ioj. on land in the parish of Stoke Ham-
mond for a schoolmaster to teach all the male
children of the inhabitants of Stoke Hammond
218
SCHOOLS
to read, write, and cast accounts. Any school-
master was liable to expulsion for nonconformity
to the doctrines of the Church of England. By
deed, 1 9 September 1 707, Thomas Cooke convey-
ed a rent-charge of ^5 101. on tenements and
lands in Shenley, Buckinghamshire, on similar
trusts, but for children of both sexes, who were,
;n addition to the three R's, to learn the Church
Catechism and to sing a psalm every Thursday.
In 1832 no school had been kept for nearly fifty
years, and the rent-charge was not paid.
SOULBURY. — Robert Lovett, of Tavistock,
Devonshire, by will, 27 November 1710, be-
queathed £300 to the poor of Soulbury, to be
laid out to their best advantage. By a decree of
the Court of Chancery, 5 June 1728, the money
was ordered to be laid out in land and conveyed
to trustees, one-half of the income to be paid to a
schoolmaster for teaching 24 poor boys and girls
of Soulbury to read, write, cast accounts and say
the Church Catechism, and the other half for
apprenticeships. The Rev. John Sambee, by
will proved 5 February 1728, gave a newly-built
messuage and tenement and the residue of his
personal estate for teaching 24 children of both
sexes. The master received £40, and the
surplus money was used in apprenticing. In
1867 there were 35 boys and 17 girls receiving
instruction, some free of charge, others at vary-
ing fees. The school, now called the Soulbury
Endowed School, had in 1903—4 an average
attendance of 68 children.
SWANBOURNE. — By will, 14 March 1712,
Nicholas Godwin gave lands for erecting a school-
house in Swanbourne and providing two annui-
ties of £9 and £6 for endowment of the school
and maintenance of the master. A free school
existed under this endowment till 1832, in which
12 boys of Swanbourne and 8 of Mursley were
taught gratuitously. In that year the school
was placed in connexion with the National
Society, and in 1833 was attended by more than
100 boys from the surrounding parishes. By
1867 the numbers had fallen to 41, 20 being
free scholars and the remainder paying zd. a
week. By a scheme under the Charitable Trusts
Acts, 1 6 July 1890, the school ceased to exist
and the endowment is to be applied in prizes,
two-thirds to children in Swanbourne, one-third
to children in Mursley.
WAVENDON. — George Wells of Wavendon, by
will, 17 January 1713, bequeathed £800 to be
laid out in land and settled on trustees for teach-
ing poor children, natives of Wavendon, to read
and write, and for apprenticing them, and he
devised a cottage with ground adjoining for the
same purposes. Beatrice Miller, one of Wells'
executors, bequeathed £200 to the school, with
which land was bought in 1730. The master
in 1832 was living in two cottages under one
roof, built in 1809-10 out of savings of income,
and there was a schoolroom adjoining erected by
Henry Hugh Hoare, one of the trustees. The
school had previously been held in the cottages
bequeathed by the founder. Ten boys were
taught the three R's in respect of the charity
and provided with clothes. There were many
paying scholars, who learnt geography, grammar
and history as extra subjects. There were over
90 children in 1867, of whom 9 boys were
clothed. By a scheme of the Charity Commis-
sioners, 15 June 1897, the endowment is made
applicable to prizes for school children and for
apprenticeships.
STOKE POGES. — Mary Salter, by will, 9 Sep-
tember 1716, gave £100 for teaching poor
children of the parish to read, write and cast
accounts. Margaret Todd, by will, 9 March
1717, bequeathed £100 for teaching reading,
the Church Catechism, and the principles of the
Protestant religion. Land was bought with
these sums, to which £20 was added by John
Parry and £15 by the trustees of Margaret
Todd's will, on 23 and 24 March 1731. Anew
schoolhouse was built before 1832, when 20
boys and 10 girls were taught free, and there
were about 40 paying scholars. No information
was supplied to the School Inquiry Commissioners
in 1867.
MOULSOE. — By will, 19 August 1719, Mary,
Countess Dowager of Northampton, directed her
executor to buy land in or near the parish of
Moulsoe to the value of £6 a year, for the main-
tenance of a schoolmaster to teach poor children
of the parish to read, write and cast accounts. A
piece of land in Bedfordshire of about fourteen
acres was bought in 1721. The schoolmaster
received the rent, and in 1832 taught from 20
to 25 children. In 1867 there were 14 boys
and 24 girls, and the income of £20 was paid to
a schoolmistress. In 1903-4 the school was
described as a Church School, with an average
attendance of 37 children. In 1904 the school
was transferred to the Buckinghamshire County
Council.
DENHAM. — This school was set up by Sir
William Bowyer and other charitable persons
for instructing 30 poor children, born in the
parish, in reading, writing and accounts, in the
principles of the Church of England, and in
other learning 'proper and useful for their station.'
It was at first supported by Sir William by an
annual allowance of £30, for which, on I April
1720, he substituted a permanent endowment in
the shape of a yearly rent-charge of the same
amount on lands in Denham. There was to be a
master and a mistress. Thomas Carter, by will,
17 December 1727, gave a field of about three
acres. Juliana Newdigate, on 29 and 30
November 1728, conveyed lands for buying
Bibles and Prayer Books for the children, and the
surplus, if any, for some scholar or scholars of the
school. One of the executors of John Nicholas,
in accordance with his verbal instructions, on
219
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
21 March 1730 conveyed lands in trust for the
benefit of the school, and it received two later
legacies, £200 from Mr. Hill, 1 1 September
1785, and £100 from the Rev. Dr. Cooke,
4 November 1798. Fifteen boys and 15 girls —
increased to 1 6 about 1830 — were taught the
three R's — the girls needlework as well, and
were all supplied with clothes annually. There
were 96 children in the school in 1867, 1 6 boys
and 1 6 girls being free and receiving clothes. In
1903-4 it had an average attendance of 144
children.
HANSLOPE : LADY PIERREPOINT'S SCHOOL. —
A tablet in the church records that Lucy Dow-
ager Lady Pierrepoint gave by will £200 for
the education of boys, and the Parliamentary
Returns of 1786 state that this bequest was
made in 1721. In 1832 the money was on loan
at 5 per cent., and the interest, £10, was paid
to a master for teaching the three R's to eight
boys in the vestry-room. With paying scholars
there was an average attendance of 25. In
1867 the income was paid for the instruction of
some children in the infant school, and is now
annexed to the Church End Council School,
with an average attendance in 1903-4 of 100
children.
WINSLOW. — By will, 9 January 1722, Joseph
Rogers bequeathed ,£600, to be invested in
land, for educating as many poor children of the
parish of Winslow as would answer. Land was
purchased 2 September 1724, and a body of
trustees, appointed on 25 September 1 727, made
regulations for the school. On 12 December
1807 the master's stipend was settled at ,£27 I Of.,
for which he was to teach 20 boys from five to
ten years of age. Twenty free boys and two
paying scholars at 8^. a week were in 1832 in-
structed in the master's dwelling-house. In
1867 there were 2O foundationers only, and
the endowment was £50 a year. On II July
1890 a scheme was made for it by the Charity
Commissioners. The school had in 1903 an
average attendance of 266 children.
NEWPORT PAGNELL. — The charity school at
Newport Pagnell must have been established
before 1730, as on 16 March of that year the
Rev. Lewis Atterbury, D.D., bequeathed to it
£10 yearly, charged on his real estate, for the
teaching of 20 poor girls of Newport Pagnell to
read and write and do plain needlework. They
were taught in a house which had been built by
Samuel Christie about 1723, and given by him
for a workhouse for the poor. At a later date it
was converted into the schoolhouse. In 1867
there were six boys paying id. a week, besides
the 20 free girls. By a scheme of 8 August
1905 the endowment was made applicable for
prizes, technical instruction, outfits, or exhibi-
tions.
BUCKINGHAM GREEN COAT SCHOOL. — Ga-
briel Newton, an alderman of Leicester, on
15 March 1760 conveyed lands to the corpora-
tion of Leicester, upon trust, among other things,
to pay the yearly sum of £26 to the mayor and
corporation of Buckingham, to be applied in
clothing, schooling, and educating 25 boys of
indigent parents of the established Church of Eng-
land in Buckingham. Each was to have a coat,
waistcoat, and breeches of green cloth, not under
2od. a yard, one shirt of flaxen cloth, not under
i-^d. a yard, and such other apparel as the trus-
tees should think proper. The rest of the money
was to be paid to a master to teach the boys
reading, writing, arithmetic, the singing of
psalms and intoning of responses during divine
service in such church as the trustees should
appoint. There was a proviso that the town
should not receive or should forfeit the endow-
ment unless the Athanasian Creed was read in
the church on the days appointed by the rubric.
For fourteen or fifteen years there was a Chan-
cery suit to set aside the will, and the sum which
accumulated in consequence was invested in
^266 13*. tfd. three per cent, consols. The
payment of £26 was afterwards annually made
by the corporation of Leicester, and 25 boys
were clothed and educated in accordance with
the terms of the gift. The master also had
15 to 30 paying scholars in 1832. The school-
house belonged to the parish and was kept in
repair by the corporation. In 1867 the school
contained only 25 free boys. The same number
was in 1895 sent to the national school founded
in 1819 and rebuilt in 1856.
FARNHAM ROYAL. — Elizabeth Hetherington,
by will, 25 April 1764, proved 9 December
1776, gave jC<\-O to the parish of Farnham Royal
towards a school for poor children, and in a
codicil she gave £100 more. These sums were
invested in New South Sea annuities. Jacob
Bryant, by will, 15 July 1802, gave ^300 3 per
cent, consols for instructing the children of the
parish in reading, writing and the principles of
the Christian religion. The dividends were
used towards the payment of the salaries of the
master and mistress of Farnham School, which
in 1832 was said to be principally supported by
voluntary contributions and gave free education
to 1 9 boys and 1 7 girls. Twenty-two boys and
37 girls were paying id. and id. a week in 1867.
It was superseded by a national school built in
1874.
RAVENSTONE. — The Rev. Robert Chapman
of Ravenstone, by will proved 3 January 1786,
bequeathed the residue of his personal estate to
find £12 a year for a proper schoolmaster for
teaching all the children of Ravenstone to read,
write, cast accounts and say the Catechism, and
2OJ. a year for books ; the surplus was to be used
for clothing and apprenticing two children of
Ravenstone and one of Little Woolstone. In
1832 about 40 children received a free elemen-
tary education, and the income amounted to
220
SCHOOLS
£150. In 1867 there was a school on the
same foundation at Little Woolstone with 40
scholars, the Ravenstone school having 47. Both
were described in 1903-435 Church of England
schools, the latter having an average attendance
of 31 children, and the former of 33.
CHALFONT ST. GILES. — On 27 July 1789
Sir Hugh Palliser gave land and a cottage to
trustees for a day school and for a Sunday school
already established. By his will — he died in
1794 — he bequeathed ,£1,000 New South Sea
annuities to provide £10 yearly for the school-
master of the day school for ten scholars from
the Sunday school, for repairs, and for clothing to
be sold to the Sunday scholars at half price. The
endowment was increased by ,£666 131. \d.
three per cent, consols, as the result of a gift by
Katherine Molloy, who died in 1817. The
income amounted to £58 in 1832, supplemented
by about ^60 from subscriptions. There were
from 100 to 1 20 scholars, boys and girls. The
children of poor people were taught free, others
paid I Of. annually, if residing in the parish,
and otherwise £i. Also 20 boys and 20 girls
were clothed. The income in 1867 was £74 ;
140 children, paying id. weekly, were in attend-
ance, 40 receiving clothing. The only elemen-
tary school here in 1903-4 was the Council
school, with an average attendance of 270.
BURNHAM : LADY RAVENSWORTH'S SCHOOL.
— Ann, Lady Ravensworth, by a codicil to her
will, 26 March 1793, bequeathed £500 of stock
to the rector of Burnham for the instruction of
12 poor girls in reading and working for one
year and a half; in the last half year any girl
who was thought worthy might be taught to
write. In 1832 ,£13 4*. was paid to a school-
mistress, and the residue spent on clothing for
the girls. The 12 girls were taught in the
national school in 1867.
221
SPORT ANCIENT AND
MODERN
HUNTING
FOXHOUNDS
THE OLD BERKELEY HUNT
I
Old Berkeley country comprises
the Chiltern Hills in South Buck-
inghamshire together with some
territory in West Hertfordshire. A
chalky soil predominates, while large
beechwoods and light arable flinty fields are its
staple features. In the woods there is little under-
growth save brambles, which enables both foxes
and hounds to travel faster than is usual in
woodlands where brushwood prevails, but it
must be admitted that the country is a cold
scenting one, especially when the fresh-fallen
leaves lie in early winter.
The title of the hunt is derived from the Earls
of Berkeley, who in the eighteenth century and
earlier hunted all the country between Berkeley
Castle in Gloucestershire and London. There
is no doubt that the lords of Berkeley did hunt
to the verge of the capital ; their Middlesex
residence, Cranford House, some ten miles west
of London, affording a convenient base for the
purpose. The famous huntsman, Tom Oldaker,
who died in 1831, aged eighty, remembered
hounds killing or losing a fox in the rough
ground in Kensington Gardens.
The first hunt kennels in Buckinghamshire
whose existence is properly authenticated were
at Gerrards Cross, and the present Lord Fitz-
hardinge has an old family account-book showing
wages paid 'to William Hill with the hounds at
Gerads Cross' in 1792 ; another entry runs
'7 Jan. -20 March, 1793. Thos. Oldaker's
bills of wages board and other expenses with the
Whipers In («V), Helpers, Hounds, and Horses
at Jcrrards Cross, £200 "Js. ^d.' It is also said
that places were used as kennels at Marlow and
at Nettlebed (Oxfordshire).
Before the close of the eighteenth century the
mastership passed out of the Berkeley family, and
the hounds became a subscription pack, the old
yellow livery being retained.
The Sporting Magazine of October, 1796, says,
' Lord Berkeley's as were, promise much better.
Fourteen hundred guineas is said to be the
strength of the present subscription ' ; and the
same magazine of November, 1797, says, ' The
subscription pack (late Lord Berkeley's, now Lord
Sefton's, Sir H. Gott's, Mr. Williams' & Co.)
commenced their season at Bisham coverts near
Mr. Vansittart's ; they hunt the surrounding
country for 2 months to come.' Lord Sefton
lived at Stoke Poges, Sir H. Gott at Chalfont
St. Peter, Mr. Williams at Temple House,
Marlow. Mr. Du Pre, of Wilton Park, Bea-
consfield, was also a member of this committee.
It is recorded that these hounds used to meet
in Berkshire, as far off as Wokingham and Farley
Hill in what is now the Garth country, although
South Buckinghamshire and West Hertfordshire
formed the true territory of the hunt.
The Sporting Magazine of 1797 contains
record of a ' hunting dinner ' held by the sub-
scribers to the Berkeley Hunt at Botham's, Salt
Hill, a well-known coaching inn on the Bath
road near Slough ; and we read that in November,
1806, ' The Berkeley Hounds began their season
with the greatest merit due to that unequalled
huntsman Tom Oldaker as having hunted them
in such superior style. They have been to covert
only 1 6 times in Gloucestershire, and killed, to
the astonishment of everyone, 21 foxes. They
arrive at Gerrards Cross, Bucks, their kennel, on
theistinst.' On 1 2 January, 1809, they 'met at
Cliefden and found about i.o in Great Sumlands
Wood.' They ran by way of Dorney Bottom,
Fulmer, Alderbourne, across the Misbourn,
through the Chalfont woods, across the Coin
' to Ryslip Coppice and stopped hounds at dark.'
This run lasted 3^ hours ; only the huntsman
and his son were up at the end. Cliveden to
Ruislip is an I i-mile point.
223
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
The mastership must before this date have
passed into the hands of the Hon. and Rev. W.
Capel, vicar of Watford, for in July, 1802, an
action for trespass in Cashiobury Park was
brought against him and the Berkeley Hounds
by his brother the Earl of Essex. The case was
tried before Lord Ellenborough at the Hertford
Assizes ; 40*. damages were awarded by the
jury. At that time cases of a similar nature
were being brought against masters of hounds
in other parts of England. On 1 1 October,
1810, a meeting of landowners in the Burnham
and Stoke Hundreds was held and a resolution
was passed, ' That the hunting with foxhounds
in this neighbourhood will be injurious to the
value and enjoyment of property, and is wholly
unsuitable to a country so near the metropolis.'
Among the signatories were the Duke of Somer-
set, Lord Boston, Lord Gambier, Rt. Hon. J.
Sullivan, Sir R. B. Harvey, Bart., Lord Gren-
ville, Hon. G. Irby, Thos. Hibbert, esq., Charles
Clowes, esq. These difficulties, however, were
overcome and hunting continued. In the next
year hounds meeting at Gerrards Cross found
' at the back of the Nine Pins publichouse ' (now
One Pin Gorse) ; 'the fox went off in high
style over a fine country, and after a very capital
run of an hour and a half was killed in Shardeloes
Park near Amersham.' l A week later they ran
a fox from Pollards Wood (Chalfont) ' and killed
him in Mr. Dorrien's park (Haresfoot) at Berk-
hampstead.'
Mr. Harvey Combe succeeJed Mr. Capel.
An obituary notice of Mr. Combe states that he
was master, with one short interval, from 1813
to i84O.2 His kennels were first at Gerrards
Cross and afterwards at Parsonage Farm, Rick-
mansworth, and he drew the countries comprised
in the present Old Berkeley East and West
Hunts.3 In 1824 he also undertook the country
now hunted by the Old Berkshire and beyond,
for which purpose he occupied kennels at King-
ston Bagpuize (Berkshire), and, it is said, at
Lechlade (Gloucestershire), and at Cricklade
(Wiltshire). In 1826 Mr. Combe gave up the Old
Berkshire country and confined himself to the Old
Berkeley, hunting South Buckinghamshire with
part of West Hertfordshire. His first huntsman
was Tom Oldaker, who, as previously stated, had
begun life with Lord Berkeley. Oldaker was
the subject of two fine paintings by Ben
Marshall ; the engravings after these pictures are
well known ; in one he is mounted on a bay
gelding, Brush, in the other on a mare, Pickle,
and in both he has with him some hounds of
stamp as good as any modern kennel might be
glad to own. Brush was a famous hunter ; some
verses on his death appeared in The Sporting
1 Sporting Magazine, xxxvii, 268.
' The Field, 4 Dec. 1858.
1 He seems also to have hunted occasionally in
South Oxfordshire by invitation of the landowners.
Magazine of i8iy.4 An engraving of Mr.
Combe mounted on Ferdinand is also extant. It
is said that he refused £1,000 for this horse.
Bob Ward, subsequently well known as hunts-
man to the Hertfordshire, was in Mr. Harvey
Combe's service as second whipper-in for three
seasons from 1834.
In 1831 Captain Sullivan appears to have I
been master for one season, in 1832 Mr. Combe
again, in 1833 Captain Freeman from the South-
wold, and Mr. Combe again the next year, 1834,
when he gave his hounds to the Surrey Union
and purchased Mr. Osbaldeston's famous Pytch-
ley pack (50 couples of working hounds and a
brilliant entry of 19 couples), which he retained
until 1840, when Mr. T. N. Allen, of the
Vache, Chalfont St. Giles, succeeded him. Mr.
Combe lent his hounds up to Mr. Allen's retire-
ment in 1842, when they were sold at Tatter-
sail's, and realized at auction the record price of
6,5 1 1 guineas. There is some doubt as to the
genuineness of the sale, but at all events the
hounds passed into possession of Lord South-
ampton, Master of the Grafton, and subsequently
became the property of Mr. Selby Lowndes.
For seven years after 1842 the country seems
to have been abandoned, but in 1849 tne Earl °f
Lonsdale again started the Old Berkeley with
kennels at Grove, Tring. He had kept harriers
there from 1843, and continued to maintain
them with the foxhounds, each pack hunting
twice a week. While the foxhounds confined
themselves strictly to their own country, the
harriers used to hunt in the Aylesbury district,
and even so far north as Wingrave. The custom
was to hunt hare in the morning and to turn out
a bag fox afterwards, a proceeding which natu-
rally provoked some satire at the time. How-
ever, these foxes, said to have been procured
direct from Lowther Castle and to have been
kept well exercised in their quarters at the Tring
kennels, showed undeniably good runs. His
lordship, who hunted from town, is said to have
worn drab breeches, a brown overcoat, and a flat
hat, which in bad weather was tied under his
chin by a black silk handkerchief. The estab-
lishment at Tring was maintained in first-rate
style, and the foxhounds proper, under this-
mastership, probably showed the best genuine
sport with wild foxes ever seen in the Old
Berkeley country. James Morgan and Goddard
Morgan were successively huntsmen, and Lord
Lonsdale hunted the country at his own expense
for thirteen years, retiring in 1862. The
hounds were bought by the supporters of the
hunt at Tattersall's on 14 April of that year,
but the harriers do not appear to have been dis-
persed until June, 1864. From 1862 to 1867
Viscount Maiden, father of the present Earl of
Essex, was master.
By arrangement with Mr. John Brown of
4 Op. cit. xlix, 194.
224
SPORT ANCIENT AND MODERN
Tring, who undertook the kennel management,
hounds were still kept at that town. In 1 864
new kennels were built at Chorleywood in
Hertfordshire. With better preservation of foxes
in the centre of the district, the western part,
namely the Wycombe and Marlow country, was
practically not hunted, hounds seldom going
west of Penn, Beaconsfield and Hedgerley.
From 1867 to 1869 Mr. C. A. Barnes, of
Chorleywood, was master, and on his retirement
Mr. Leicester Hibbert, of Chalfont Lodge, and
Mr. Oscar Blount, of Orche Hill, Chalfont
St. Peter, became joint masters, with Mr. T.
Tyrwhitt Drake, of Shardeloes, who had just
retired from the mastership of the Bicester Hunt,
to assist them with his experience and advice.
Hounds were out three days a week, twice in Buck-
inghamshire and once in Hertfordshire. In May,
1873,3 question of boundary with the Whaddon
Chase Hunt was decided by a committee at
Boodles' Club, the northern draw of the Old Berke-
ley being determined as Halton and Tring Woods.
In June, 1874, another question of boundary
with the South Oxfordshire Hunt involving the
right to draw Kimblewick Gorse was given by
an M.F.H. committee in favour of the Old
Berkeley. The boundary now recognized runs,
roughly, north-west along the road from Tring
to Aylesbury as far as the latter town, thence to
Hartwell on the west, turning south to Bledlow
Wood, through Dashwood Hill, to Hambleden,
thence eastward on the line of the Thames nomin-
ally as far as the Pool at Wapping. The eastern
boundary lies in Middlesex and Hertfordshire.
During the joint mastership above referred to
a good run occurred, terminating in unusual
fashion. Hounds hit the line of a travelling fox
in the heath at Shardeloes Park ; they ran
through Penn and Common Woods, the fox
being viewed from the latter at Church Knoll
by the Rev. E. T. Drake. They passed on the
east side of Penn village and, Holtspur reached,
hunted to the edge of the park at Hall Barn,
then along Mill Wood above the Wooburn
Valley through Hedsor to the park fence oppo-
site Dropmore. The fox was too beaten to
jump and he ran along the palings towards the
Thames, getting across the sunk lane between
Hedsor and Cliveden into the woods of the latter.
Hounds vanished after him and the riders had to
make a long detour by the lodge gates to follow
them. In Cliveden they could hear hounds
baying the fox at ground in the hanging woods
over the river : it was nearly dark, and when
they were got together there were two and a
half couples short. It subsequently transpired
they had followed the fox to ground and had
been buried by a fall of chalk. Many years
afterwards, about 1 886, another fox was run to
ground in the same place, and when digging
after him the skeletons of the fox and hounds
lost nineteen jears before were discovered.
In 1875, Mr. A. H. Longman of Shendish,
Hertfordshire, became master, and the next season
hounds were moved from Chorleywood to new
kennels on his estate. Bob Worrall was huntsman ;
he had had previous service with the Bicester,
Warwickshire, and V. W.H. establishments.
Mr. Longman spared no effort to improve the
hounds, which were strengthened by fresh blood
from the best kennels in England ; and by
arrangement with the hunt the pack became his
private property. Capital sport was shown
during his mastership. In the spring of 1880,
the country was divided, and separate establish-
ments for the eastern and western divisions
were created. Mr. Longman retained the
Hertfordshire side, while Mr. Austin Mackenzie,
residing at Great Marlow, undertook the Buck-
inghamshire country, with kennels at Daws Hill,
High Wycombe. The high road from Uxbridge
through the Chalfonts and the Missendens to
Aylesbury formed the boundary between the
divisions : each pack hunted twice a week.
Under this arrangement Mr. Mackenzie opened
up a good deal of new country on the extreme
west in the district of Marlow, Hambleden, and
High Wycombe. He acquired Mr. Longman's
doghounds to which he subsequently added drafts
from the Blankney, Fitzwilliam, and Badminton,
thus laying the foundation of the famous pack
which he took with him in 1885 to the Wood-
land Pytchley country, and on his retirement in
1889 sold for the large sum of £5,000. On 20
December, 1882, Mr. Mackenzie had a fine run
from near Bishopstone round the west and north
of Aylesbury by Bierton and Wingrave, ending
with a kill near Marston Gate, thus traversing
the Old Berkeley, Bicester, and Whaddon Chase
countries. On 15 January, 1883, whilst hunting
at Danesfield, the Old Berkeley clashed with
Mr. Garth's hounds who had crossed the Thames,
then in flood, in pursuit of a fox found in Bowsey
Hill, Berkshire ; and on i January, 1884, Mr.
Mackenzie in turn hunted a fox from Warren
Wood, Little Marlow, across the Thames at Spade
Oak (above Bourne End), hounds carrying the line
as far as Maidenhead Thicket. This performance
has not been repeated, although both the South
Oxfordshire and Old Berkshire hounds have in
recent years swum the river near Wallingford in
the course of runs.
In the spring of 1885, Mr Mackenzie under-
took the Woodland Pytchley and with him went
the hounds. At the same time Mr. Longman
relinquished the Old Berkeley (East) and his
pack was dispersed, the various lots making the
respectable total of 1,250 guineas at auction.
About this time the character of the country
began to alter owing to the construction of the
Metropolitan Extension railway from Baker
Street to Aylesbury, which passed through the
centre of the hunt by way of Rickmansworth,
Chorleywood, and Amcrsham. There had
225
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
previously been no line between the L. & N.W.
Railway, and the G.W. Railway, the whole
country retaining its wild and primitive character
owing to its comparative inaccessibility. How-
ever, following the Metropolitan has come the
Great Central line through Denham, Gerrards
Cross, and Beaconsfield to Wycombe, opened in
1906, and much building has taken place round
the various stations on both lines. When sheep
were numerous on the Chiltern Hills the wattle
fences to the inclosures were well maintained,
but since the passing of agricultural prosperity
and the disappearance of many flocks the hedges
in most cases are little more than rows of bushes :
there is a tendency also to put land under grass
with its concomitant wire fencing : covert
shooting, too, has become greatly extended, and
game farms, to which the light soil is very suit-
able, are numerous : all being factors adverse to
the hunting interest. Nevertheless, there is a
fair stock of foxes, and the hunt remains a popular
institution in the country.
In 1885, therefore, the whole country had
fallen vacant, and Mr. Harding Cox, who at
different times lived at Missenden Abbey, at
Harefield, and at Chorleywood House, succeeded
the two outgoing masters. The country was
hunted as one, and the Chorleywood kennels,
rented from Mr. Howard Gilliat, were again uti-
lized. Mr. Cox acquired Mr. Henry Chaplin's
famous Blankney pack, and drafts from Lord
Waterford's and the Croome were bought at
Rugby. W. Wilson and T. Goddard came
with the hounds from Blankney as kennel hunts-
man and second whippsr-in respectively, Mr.
Cox carrying the horn himself. Hounds were out
three days a week. Two good runs in Bucking-
hamshire are worthy of notice ; the first was from
Hodgemoor by Little Shardeloes, Pipers Wood,
Ley Hill Common to the hill above Boxmoor,
where scent failed. The other took place over
a similar line of country the reverse way, namely
from Cowcroft, near Ley Hill, by Chesham
Bois, Latimer, Rogers Wood, Hodgemoor,
Wilton Park, the fox being killed at Wasps
Wood near Hedger'ey.
In May, 1888, a demand for more hunting on
the western side led to division of the country
once more, and separate establishments have
been maintained from that year up to the
present time (1907). Mr. Harding Cox con-
tinued on the eastern side, while Captain T. H.
Tyrwhitt Drake of Little Shardeloes, Amersham,
a cousin of Mr. T. T. Drake, the well-
known squire of Shardeloes, formed a new pack
to hunt the west or Buckinghamshire side.
Captain Drake, who had a life-long connexion
with the locality, enjoyed the support of all
classes concerned with the promotion of fox-
hunting. His pack was formed by a strong draft
of old and young hounds presented by Mr.
Harding Cox, supplemented by purchases from
the Bicester, Brocklesby, and others. Kennels
at Shardeloes were lent by Mr. T. T. Drake,
who assisted very materially in starting the pack.
Although the stock of foxes in the country was
not great, this defect rapidly improved as seasons
went by, and good sport was enjoyed until
Captain Drake's retirement in 1895. For the
two previous seasons he had had as partner in the
mastership his cousin, Mr. T. W. Tyrwhitr
Drake, son of the gentleman above referred to.
Among Captain Drake's good runs was one
from Rogers Wood, near Amersham, round the
Wilton Park estate, through Hodgemoor to Days
Wood across the Misbourn to Latimer where
the fox was killed. Another was from the Box
Wood at Chequers Court through the Hampden
Woods past Speen, through the Bradenham
Woods to West Wycombe where hounds were
run out of scent. A remarkable day's sport took
place one frosty day when hounds met at Penn
Street attended by a field of only half a dozen
riders. A fox from Penn Wood led them through
Shardeloes crossing at the head of the lake to
Piper's Wood and Amersham Rectory, thence to
the Vache where they met the O. B. H. (East) ;
the two packs ran on together and killed their
fox close to Chalfont St. Giles. In the afternoon
of the same day a fox from Hailacre ran by
Peterley to the edge of Chequers Big Wood
where hounds were stopped at dark. Both of
these runs were six-mile points.
Meanwhile the Eastern Division had in the
spring of 1889 passed from the hands of Mr.
Harding Cox into those of a committee. The
Earl of Clarendon was chairman with Mr. R. B.
Webber to supervise the kennels, which were once
again at Shendish. This arrangement terminated
in the spring of 1891, when Mr. Webber took
the mastership, and hounds returned to the
Chorleywood kennels. Mr. Webber still con-
tinues to hold office to the satisfaction of all
concerned.
Any historical sketch of the hunt would be
incomplete without reference to the late Mr.
Harvey Fellows of Rickmansworth, who from
boyhood was a follower of these hounds and who
held the secretaryship of the hunt from 1864 to
1889.
In the spring of 1895 Colonel Alfred Gilbey
of Wooburn House, was elected master of the
O.B.H. (West), on Captain Drake's retirement.
The latter gentleman's hounds were purchased
and lent to the country by Sir Edward Lawson
(the present Lord Burnham) of Hall Barn, Mr.
W. Christie Miller of Britwell Court, Burnham,
and Mr. Henry Gold who lived first at Formosa,
Cookham, and afterwards at Hedsor. Mr.
W. H. Grenfell (now Lord Desborough) lent
his old harrier kennels at Taplow Court. Charles
Lowman was engaged as huntsman from the
Goodwood, which pack was being given up by
the Duke of Richmond. The following runs
226
SPORT ANCIENT AND MODERN
during Colonel Gilbey's mastership are worthy of
record : 30 November, 1895, from the Fir Planta-
tion between Wooburn and Dropmore, over the
Hall Barn estate through Burke's Grove to Hodge-
moor and Rogers Wood ending with a kill in
the open near Coleshill. 18 February, 1896,
from Warren Wood, Little Marlow, through High
Heavens, Moor Wood, past Parmoor across the
Hambleden Valley, through the Greenlands and
Fawley Woods. Near Pishill the fox was headed
and hounds hunted back to Skirmett, eventually
losing the line near Parmoor. The extreme points
of this run were 8 miles, and the distance may
have been double as hounds ran. 21 Decem-
ber, 1898, from Coombe Hill through the
Scrubs nearly to Wendover, turning back along
the foothills by Chequers Court to the Box Wood,
past Whiteleaf Cross through the Hillocks at
Hampden, over the G.W. Railway up Lodge Hill
and lost at Radnage. This was a hunting run of
two hours, the extreme points being 9 miles,
but far more as hounds ran. 20 January, 1899,
meeting at Gerrards Cross, hounds found in
Siblets Wood and ran by Gold Hill, Orche Hill,
across Chalfont Park, by Horn Hill, Bottom
Wood, Heron's Gate, West Hyde, Philipshill
Pollards Wood, to Amersham, where they killed
the fox in the churchyard. Time, two hours,
seven minutes. From Siblets to West Hyde is
4 miles, and West Hyde to Amersham is 7 miles.
Hounds covered 1 8 miles.
On Lowman's death in the summer of 1900,
W. Haines from the Woodland Pytchley came as
huntsman. Colonel Gilbey gave up in the spring
of 1902, and was succeeded by Mr. W. Tyrwhitt
Drake of Shardeloes, who reinstated the old
kennels there.
After one season Mr. Drake retired, and was
succeeded in 1903 by Mr. Robert Leadbetter of
Hazlemere Park, High Wycombe, who erected
new kennels on his estate. To compensate for
the growing difficulty of hunting the more
populous southern part of the country Mr. Lead-
better has successfully opened up the corner of
Aylesbury Vale which lies between the Chiltern
Hills and Hart well, and good sport is now ob-
tained in that district which had previously been
very short of foxes.
THE WHADDON CHASE
The country known as the Whaddon Chase
has been hunted by the Selby Lowndes family
since the latter end of the eighteenth century,
when it formed part of the Duke of Grafton's
territory and was lent to Mr. Selby Lowndes.
As an independent country the Whaddon Chase
dates from the autumn of 1842,' when the duke
sold his hounds to Mr. Assheton Smith ; Mr. Selby
Lowndes, who was a great admirer of the famous
huntsman George Carter, engaged Dickins, who
• J. M. K. Elliott, Fifty TearS foxhunting.
had turned hounds to Carter, as his kennel hunts-
man and whipper in, carrying the horn himself.
His kennels were at Whaddon Hall, the family
residence, and as he had somewhat unorthodox
ideas concerning the shape of a hound, he soon
got a pack together. Mr. Lowndes held it not
essential that a hound should be very straight,
maintaining that those deficient in this respect
lasted longer. His theory on this point may have
been right or wrong, but there can be no doubt
that the pack showed excellent sport and killed
their foxes.
For eleven seasons Mr. Selby Lowndes hunted
the Whaddon Chase country; in 1853 it became
necessary to restore it to the Grafton, then under
the mastership of Lord Southampton, that he
might accept the invitation tendered him to hunt
the North Warwickshire country which had de-
pended upon the attentions of neighbouring
masters since Mr. Wilson's resignation in 1845.
Mr. Selby Lowndes hunted the North Warwick-
shire until 1855 when he went to the Atherstone,
in succession to Col. Anstruther Thomson : and
after four seasons here returned in 1859 to Buck-
inghamshire. The death of Lady Southampton
in the autumn of 1 860 caused Lord Southamp-
ton practically to give up hunting, and Mr. Selby
Lowndes resumed his own country, hunting it
with his own pack ; and since that date the Whad-
don Chase has remained uninterruptedly in the
hands of the family whose property forms no
inconsiderable proportion of the hunt territory.
In 1 862 Lord Southampton resigned the master-
ship of the Grafton, and Mr. Selby Lowndes
purchased his pack. He retained the bitch hounds,
sending the Whittlebury dog pack to be dis-
posed of at TattersalPs. With his new pack he
showed exceptionally good sport; the country
acquired a great reputation and the meets on
Tuesday and Saturday brought large numbers of
sportsmen from the surrounding country. The
Vale of Aylesbury, a large portion of which is em-
braced by the Whaddon Chase boundaries, is, as
a general rule, excellent scenting country; in
some parts the land is deep during the winter,
and does not carry stock ; an advantage to hounds,
but trying to horses ; only a well mounted man
can hope to live with the pack when they run
on the low grounds. In the 'seventies Mr. Selby
Lowndes hunted three days a week ; though not
a hard rider, his intimate knowledge of the country
and of the ways of foxes enabled him to keep
near his hounds, and he was always at hand if
they needed his assistance. His bitches were a very
fast pack, as they had need to be, for the Whaddon
Chase field was noted for ' thrusting * qualities.
As the master did not breed sufficient hounds at
home for each season's entry, the strength was
maintained by purchase; the Fitzwilliam draft
was taken for many years, ' and very good they
were,' says Mr. Elliott. It was in 1875 that he
made over the horn to Edmund Bentley, who
227
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
hunted the pack with success until his retirement
from active service in the field in 1895. In
1885 Mr. Selby Lowndes retired from the
mastership after forty-three years' office, all but
five seasons of which he had passed in Bucking-
hamshire ; and was succeeded by his son, Mr.
William Selby Lowndes, who retained Bentley
as huntsman, and continued to show sport worthy
of the traditions of the hunt. The Whaddon
Chase now reverted to two days a week as in
former years, but no other change of importance
is to be recorded. On Bentley's retirement
Charles Sturman succeeded him as huntsman and
remained in Mr. Selby Lowndes' service till 1901,
when he was succeeded by the first whipper-in,
George Jones. In 1903 Mr. W. Selby Lowndes,
junr., of Whaddon Chase, joined his father in
the mastership, and so father and son presided
over the destinies of the hunt until 1906, when
the former resigned, leaving the present master
to rule alone. George Jones died in 1906, and
his place was taken by Harry Goddard from the
Duhallow in Ireland.
Those who hunt with the Whaddon Chase
are expected to support the hunt by subscription,
j£35 being the minimum accepted from anyone
wishing to hunt regularly. The pack and
kennels at Whaddon, near Bletchley, are the
property of Mr. Selby Lowndes of Whaddon
Hall.
Among the followers of the hunt are remem-
bered Major Whyte Melville, the novelist, Mr.
John Leech, the famous Punch artist, who found
in the Vale of Aylesbury numerous subjects for
his inimitable drawings, and the Hon. Robert
Grimston, so well known in cricketing circles :
Lord Petre, who kept staghounds in Essex, used
to make a point of visiting the Vale once a week,
and Lord Russell also hunted frequently with
Mr. Selby Lowndes.
STAG HUNTING
THE ROYAL BUCKHOUNDS
Though the history of the Royal Buckhounds
pertains to the neighbouring county of Berkshire,
the connexion of the pack with Buckinghamshire
where they had nineteen out of their forty-three
recognized places of meeting cannot be entirely
ignored. The most northerly meet was at High
Wycombe, the most easterly, Denham, and on
the west, Great Marlow. During the last years
of the existence of the royal pack, the spread of
game preservation in the county did something
to impair its amenities for stag hunting, but in
earlier days some great runs were enjoyed. In
1684 a deer gave the Duke of York and his suite
a tremendous run through Beaconsfield and
Amersham well into Oxfordshire. The duke
and Colonel James Graham, who in the next
year was appointed master, were among the few
who got to the end. William Bartlett, for many
years whipper-in, told Lord Ribblesdale that he
had known hounds to run from Gerrards Cross
into the Vale of Aylesbury ; and the country
about Gerrards Cross and Beaconsfield was by no
means to be despised, ' there is lots of room and
we had some capital gallops in that part of the
world,' writes Lord Ribblesdale. ' When there
had been plenty of rain these pale ploughs and
the high beech woods carried a capital scent, and
the configuration of the country wanted a gallop-
ing horse.' A memorable run in Lord Colville's
time was that of 2 March, 1868, when the stag
enlarged at Denham Court, ran past Pinner to
the foot of Harrow Hill, thence over Wormwood
Scrubbs to Paddington Goods Station, where he
was taken ; the king, then Prince of Wales, was
out on this occasion. One of the fastest runs
Lord Ribblesdale remembers was fifty minutes
with an outlying deer from Chalfont Park. The
deer, Bramshill by name, ran to Chalfont St.
Giles and soiled in the reservoir where it was
found necessary to leave him ; this run was
more like a flat race ; top speed and nothing
worth mention to jump the whole way. Salt
Hill, near Slough, was for a long time the open-
ing meet of the season ; the Slough country
meets were very popular in former days, but the
increase of cultivation spoiled it in the eyes of the
hunting fraternity.
When the royal pack was given up in 1901,
the Berks and Bucks Farmers' Harriers, of which
Sir Robert Wilmot was master until 1907, were
converted into staghounds to hunt the country.
With kennels and deer paddocks at Binfield
Grove, Bracknell, this pack hunts two days
a week, showing good sport to its subscribers.
The Harrow or Middlesex side of the country is
not visited, the operations of the builder having
rendered this district practically impossible for
hunting.
LORD ROTHSCHILD'S STAGHOUNDS
Staghounds were maintained in the Vale of
Aylesbury in the 'thirties by Sir Charles Shakerly ;
but practically nothing has been recorded con-
cerning their doings, and the history of sport with
the carted deer begins in 1 839, when Baron Lionel
Rothschild purchased from Sir Charles the hounds,
fourteen or fifteen couple, the stock of deer and
deer cart, and took over the huntsman Roffey.
The hounds were first kennelled at Hastoe, near
Tring, the hunt horses being stabled at Tring
Park ; at a later date the pack was moved to
Mentmore, where Baron Mayer Rothschild lived ;
and about 1877 to their present kennels at Ascott,
near Leighton Buzzard, where the deer paddock
is also situated. When Baron Lionel Rothschild
acquired the hounds, he associated with himself
in the mastership his brothers Baron Mayer and
Sir Anthony de Rothschild. Baron Mayer offi-
ciated as sole master for a few seasons in the
228
SPORT ANCIENT AND MODERN
'fifties, but Baron Lionel outlived his brothers,
who died in 1877 and 1876 respectively, and
retained office single-handed till his death in 1879.
He was succeeded by Lord Rothschild and
Mr. Leopold de Rothschild as joint masters,
who for a long time divided field duty, the
former officiating on Thursdays, the latter on
Mondays. For some years past, however,
Lord Rothschild has been unable to hunt, and
his place is generally taken by the Hon. Walter
Rothschild, M.P.
Roffey remained for a few seasons as huntsman,
and retiring gave place to Barwick, from Earl
Fitzwilliam's, who was succeeded in 1852 by
Tom Ball. Ball was followed about 1860 by
Fred Cox, who had turned hounds to him for
three or four seasons ; and Cox continued to
carry the horn until 1894, when he retired after
45 years' service. To succeed him Lord Roths-
child engaged John Boore from the Warwickshire;
he retired after the season of 1905-6 by reason,
principally, of disablement caused by a bad fall
over wire at the end of the previous season.
William Gaskin, for many years whipper-in, took
his place.
The pack purchased by Baron Lionel in 1839
consisted almost entirely of Cheshire blood ;
since then it has been strengthened in number,
about thirty couples being usually kennelled at
Ascott, and immensely improved by importation
of the best blood in England ; the Belvoir, Fitz-
william, Brocklesby, Bramham Moor, and other
kennels having been tapped.
It was customary in former days to enlarge a
few deer on the Dunstable side of the country,
and in October give the young hounds a run
with blood at the finish. The deer paddocks
have been supplied from most of the principal
parks in the kingdom ; the best were those
obtained from Savernake. Some very long runs
have been given by these deer at various times ;
a few of from 22 to 24 miles are recorded. Lord
Rothschild maintains the staghounds entirely at
his own cost. The Vale of Aylesbury, in which
the deer are usually enlarged, is practically all
sound old grass, and is one of the finest hunting
grounds in the kingdom, though it rides deep in
wet weather ; the number of brooks and ditches
make a bold water jumper essential. Very little
wire occurs in the Vale ; the hunt is immensely
popular with the farmers, a committee of whom
is in charge of the arrangements for the removal
of any wire that exists.
EARL CARRINGTON'S BLOODHOUNDS
This is one of the few counties in England
which has seen the chase of the deer by blood-
hounds. In 1880 Lord Wolvcrton gave to Earl
Carrington the packof sixteen or seventeen couples
of bloodhounds which he had hunted for six or
seven seasons in Dorset. Their new owner
built kennels at Wycombe, and obtaining the
support of the landowners and farmers, hunted
the carted deer for one season, enlarging at points
between the kennels and Uxbridge. Several
good runs were enjoyed, one fast gallop of 15
miles in March, 1881, being noteworthy; but at
the end of his first season, Earl Carrington,
who had hunted the pack himself, decided to
give it up, and the hounds were sold to go
abroad.
HARRIERS
The North Bucks Harriers were established in
1896. Mr. E. A. Milne, then master of the
Trinity Foot Beagles, brought his hounds to
Shenley for the Christmas vacation 1894-5, and,
having shown the neighbouring farmers good
sport with them, responded to their request that
he would hunt the hare regularly, an J founded the
North Bucks pack with twenty couples of ig-inch
harriers in the following year. Mr. Milne, who
had now taken holy orders and lived at Shenley
Rectory, assumed the mastership and carried the
horn himself, hunting two days a week. In
1900 he resigned the harriers to take the master-
ship of the Cattistock foxhounds, and was
succeeded by Mr. W. F. Fuller, of Dagnall,
Berkhampstead, who also hunted the pack him-
self. Under Mr. Fuller's mastership, the hunting
days were reduced to Friday and an occasional
bye. In 1905 Mr. Fuller resigned to become
joint master of the Cattistock with the Rev. E. A.
Milne, and Mr. S. J. Green, of Luton, Bed-
fordshire, took the vacant office, which he continues
to hold, hunting the pack as his predecessors had
done. The harriers, which are maintained by
subscription, hunt the country for about 10 miles
north of Bletchley and 20 miles south, meeting
in Northamptonshire and Bedfordshire as well as
in Buckinghamshire. In 1902 the hounds were
moved from Shenley to Dagnall, where they are
still kennelled.
The Berks and Bucks, converted in 1901 into
staghounds, had a long record as harriers. The
pack was established in the reign of George IV
as a royal hunt, and there is record of hunting
turned-down hares in Windsor Great Park for
the delectation of the Duke of Brunswick and
his suite in 1832 ; the father of the famous
royal huntsman, Charles Davis, being the hunts-
H.R.H. the Prince Consort became
man.
master of the pack about 1842, having obtained
from a Mr. Smith in the Isle of Wight 15
couples of harriers 'vhich were kennelled at
Cumberland Lodge. His Majesty, as Prince of
Wales, followed his father in the mastership, and
he was succeeded in turn by Sir Robert Harvey,
Mr. Grenfell, Mr. Phipps, Captain Cotton, and
Mr. P. E. Barthropp. The date at which the
Berks and Bucks ceased to be ' Royal ' and became
a subscription pack is not known.
229
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
BEAGLES
The Stoke Place Beagles, owned by Mr. Howard
Vyse, of Stoke Place, near Slough, were esta-
blished in 1891. The pack, which consists of
about twenty couples of 1 4-inch hounds, is
kennelled at the master's residence ; it hunts over
the Old Berkeley (West) country, meeting twice
a week. It is a private pack ; Mr. Howard Vyse
carries the horn himself.
OTTERHOUNDS
The Bucks Otterhounds were established in 1890
by the Messrs. Utthwatt, of Ivy House, Great
Linford, to hunt the streams of Bucks and
neighbouring counties, but they extend operations
as far as Warwickshire and Lincolnshire. Mr. W.
Utthwatt became master in 1891, Mr. G. Ut-
thwatt filling the offices of field-master and hon.
secretary. The pack as originally formed consisted
of otterhounds and foxhounds, but the latter were
drafted out, and for some years past only pure
otterhounds bred from the West Cumberland
and the Hon. E. Hill's hounds have been used.
In 1899 the rivers of Buckinghamshire were
hunted by Sir H. Hoare, who got together a pack
for the purpose ; he gave up after one season, and
the Messrs. Utthwatt resumed. At an earlier
period the Rev. C. Selby Lowndes hunted the
otter in the streams of the county. The Bucks
otterhounds, which are maintained by subscription,
number about eighteen couples ; they are ken-
nelled at Great Linford, and hunt three days a
week.
COURSING
Buckinghamshire has never been celebrated as
a coursing county, and very few public meetings
have been held at any time within its borders.
Mr. N. K. Wentworth, of Great Bedwyn, Wilt-
shire, the retired coursing judge, says : —
The only meeting I ever judged in Bucks was at
Maidenhead, under the management of the East Berks
Club, and was, I believe, held by permission of a
Mr. Grenfield. It was a very pleasant meeting ;
there were plenty of hares and the ground was open
enough to test the merits of the dogs without punish-
ing them. Tiie Bear Hotel was head quarters, and the
secretary of the East Berks Club was Mr. C. Philbrick,
of Reading.
The meeting to which Mr. Wentworth refers
would have taken place in the 'sixties ; and since
that time small meetings have been held in the same
neighbourhood under the management of Mr. F.
Cleare, of Burnham, Buckinghamshire, the secre-
tary ; these have now ceased to exist. Mr. R.
Harvey, of Chadlington, Charlbury, another old
coursing man in the district, says : —
I do not remember any public meeting in Bucks
except that at Long Crendon, held by the East Berks
Club. The head quarters were at Tharr.e, about two
miles away from the ground coursed over by permission
of Messrs. Crook, Colman, and Reynolds ; hares were
fairly plentiful and heavy fallows more so. There
used to be some good private coursing over Lord
Clifden's estate at Worminghall, good ground, plenty
of hares, and a keeper who took a delight in the sport ;
he and several local farmers kept a brace or two of
greyhounds and enjoyed some fine sport.
There are now very few hares in this district;
their dearth is very largely a consequence of the
Ground Game Act. There may be some private
sport occasionally, but most of the old school of
coursers have passed away.
RACING
FLAT RACING
Racing was never very prominent among the
sports of the county. When John Cheny, or
Cheney, issued his Historical List of all Horse
Matches for the first time, in 1728, he obtained
only one subscriber in Buckinghamshire, namely,
Mr. Richard Lowndes. Nevertheless the meet-
ings were fairly well supported during the first
half of the eighteenth century. The Dukes of
Grafton and Hamilton, the Earls of Essex, Hali-
fax, Jersey, and Viscount Howe ran horses at
Newport Pagnel, Aylesbury, and Great Marlow,
content to race for pure sport. Indeed the value
of the stakes offered in those days was not calcu-
lated to tempt anyone to run horses for profit
other than might accrue from betting.
The Newport Pagnel meeting is one of the
first of which record exists, and the programme
for 1728 was very modest ; one race for a plate
of ^15 value, winner to be sold for 30 guineas;
and one for a purse of 30 guineas on the follow-
ing day, for which only two horses started, these
having already met in the j£i5 race. These
two races made up the programme until 1733,
when a third event, a jCio plate for galloways,
give and take, was added. This addition was
repeated in 1734, but Lord Weymouth's All-of-
a-piece was the only bona fide starter for it, two
hacks being entered to make a race. The fields
230
SPORT ANCIENT AND MODERN
in 1735 and subsequent years were very small,
but 1738 saw larger entries for prizes of smaller
value, five horses starting for a. £10 plate and
six for one of £12, the latter run in four heats.
In 1739 one I o-guinea stake only was contested,
the second day's race of the same value failing to
fill. The leading personages of the county had
ere now ceased to support the meeting, and this
was the last held until 1756, when two prizes of
£50 each were offered, with restrictions in favour
of horses which had never won a Royal Plate nor
a race worth £50, matches excepted ; both races
filled, and the meeting, on similar lines, was held
again the next year. The races of 1757 were
the last held here until September, 1771, when
they were revived — two £50 plates, each con-
tested by three horses. The 1772 meeting shows
an improvement in the shape of larger fields, and
next year three races, the Town Plate, j£so, the
Gentlemen's subscription purse, ^50, and a
20-guinea sweepstakes, were well supported ; the
Town Plate in particular for many years brought
large fields. In 1776 no fewer than ten horses
started for the three-mile heats, and in 1780
Hazard, by Matchem, won in a field of eleven.
Despite the support accorded, the meeting came
to an end in 1782, and was not revived until
1828, when one day's sport, comprising four
races and a match was successfully brought off ;
one of these races was a subscription for a Gold
Cup, another a Welter Stakes, 10 sovs. for
hunters not thoroughbred, and a third a
Farmers' Selling Stakes of 7 guineas each, with
additions by the Marquis of Chandos and the
Race fund ; the winner was to be sold for
2OO sovs. if demanded. On these lines the
meeting continued for several years, the Gold
Cup being the principal event. In 1836 it
began to show symptoms of decay, Ruinous, by
the famous sire Filho da Puta walking over for
the Gold Plate, while only seven horses (inclu-
ding Ruinous) ran in the other two races which
completed the card for the day. No meeting
was held in 1837, nor was racing here revived
until 1868, when a steeplechase meeting, with
one 5-furlong selling race on the flat, was
held.
That of 1729 is the first Aylesbury meeting
recorded ; it was not a very brilliant affair, and
was not held in the following year. The attempt
to revive it in 1731 with two races worth £15
and £20 respectively, met with small success,
one horse starting for each event. The 1732
meeting of two days produced better results ; one
' free purse ' of 40 guineas and another of 20
guineas bringing three starters for each ; but no
more races took place until September, 1736,
when a modest i o-guinea plate for galloways
was contested.
Racing in Buckinghamshire now entered on
oneof its many pcriodsof depression. From 1740-7
inclusive, not a single meeting was held in the
county.1 In August, 1 748, Aylesbury races were
revived with two events, each worth £50, the
first being for ' such hunters of the foregoing
season as never started for anything under a
Hunters' Plate.'
In 1751 the meeting was held on Hay don
Hill. There were two races, the Gentlemen's
Purse and the Town Purse, each worth ^50,
and for some years the sport was continued with
varying success. The Hunters' Race was generally
the most successful — twelve horses started for this
event in 1754 — and Aylesbury was continued
when all other meetings were suspended. The
races of 1/59, however, were the last held until
1764, when they were again revived with two
events, one a £50, weight for age, the other a
« Whim ' 3 Plate of the same value. The Whim
Plate was given until 1772 when the conditions
were altered; in 1773 it disappeared, the two
races of which the two-day meeting then con-
sisted being the County Purse and Town Purse,
each worth ^50. In 1776 the programme wa5
enlarged by the addition of the Hon. George
Nugent Grenville's £50 for Hunters,* to carry
12 stone, four mile heats; it was not a great
success, bringing only two starters ; Mr. Brand's
Leander beat his opponent Mr. Lake's Bajazet,
in two of the three heats. Horses of fair class
ran at the Aylesbury meeting on occasion ; the
first race this year was won by Indian by Snap ;
the Town Purse by Lime got by Squirrel, both
good sires. Mr. Nugent Grenville's Hunter race
was more successful in 1777, bringing four
starters ; three of which, it may be observed,
were greys. In 1778 the meeting consisted of
three days' racing with five events, the new ones
being a subscription race for Hunters, and a £50
prize given by the Earl of Chesterfield, which
latter race was won by Hautboy, a good horse in
his day.
In 1779 Mr. Nugent Grenville's Cup for
Hunters was not given, but Earl Temple came
forward as donor of one of equal value. In
1781 the meeting once more consisted of only
two races, the Town Plate and Gentlemen's
Purse, each worth ^50. These two races in
1 Cheney. The Act of 1741 was no doubt largely
responsible for this temporary cessation of racing.
Under 13 Gco. II, cap. 19, races for a stake of less
value than £50 were absolutely prohibited save at
Black Hambleton in Yorkshire, and Newmarket. This
unpopular restriction was withdrawn by statute (18
Geo. II, cap. 34, sec. xi), five years later.
' In a ' Whim ' plate the weight carried was calcu-
lated in accordance with the horse's height (measured
to an eighth of an inch) and age.
* The old description of a hunter (to which
the owner had to make oath in due form) was
a horse which had ' never started for cither match or
plate but has been actually used as a hunter at the
last season, and not only to get the name, but really
as a hunter ; nor has he been in sweats with an
intention to run but only from Lady day last.'
231
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
1782 were won by Mr. Tombs' four-year-old
Slender, who was also successful at Newport
Pagnel, five days later, winning the Gentlemen's
Purse.
The meeting of 1782 was the last held in
the county until 1819 when the Aylesbury races
were revived. It was not a very successful essay;
six races were advertised for the 26 and 27
August, and six horses competed in the three
races on the first day, two of them starting twice
and running five two-mile heats ; on the second
day there were two walks over, while the
Graziers' and Farmers' Cup, value 70 guineas for
horses not thoroughbred, for which four started,
produced a dispute ; we are not told how it was
settled. This year's experience discouraged the
promoters of racing in the county for Aylesbury
dropped out of the calendar as a flat race meeting ;
nor was another meeting held in Buckingham-
shire under Jockey Club rules until 1828, when
that of Newport Pagnel was revived.
A race meeting was held at intervals at Great
Marlow during the first decades of the eighteenth
century. The events were not valuable nor
were the horses of very high class ; in 1728 two
animals started fora £25 prize and the Give and
Take Plate of £ 1 5 offered on the second day
was nearly a fiasco, ' for this prize nothing started
but a grey mare of Captain Brown's except two
hacks just to qualify her,' i.e to fulfil the con-
ditions on which the money was offered. It was
more successful in the three following years, 1731
witnessing three races for which no entrance fees
were charged. This was the last until 1752
when it was resuscitated as a three-day meeting
with three £50 plates, each of which brought
good fields. Lord March's mare Camilla by
Cade won the first race, and Mr. Roger's Soldier
by Sedbury the second ; but names known to
the General Stud Book are rare in the annals of
these races. The meeting revived so auspiciously
only continued as a three-day fixture until 1754 ;
in the following year it was reduced to two days,
as such surviving to encourage local horses with
£50 plates until 1756, when it was given up.
Racing at Marlow was not revived until 1837
when the modest programme for two days (in-
cluding a hurdle race of two sovs. each with a
purse added, which hurdle race was one with
' four leaps ') was fairly well supported by the
local sportsmen for whom the executive catered.
The meeting conducted on these lines survived
until the year 1847, the principal event for some
years being Colonel Sir W. R. Clayton's Silver
Cup added to a five sov. sweepstake ; in 1847 'f
consisted of two days' racing, with two flat races
and one hurdle race on each day, each event being
run in two or three heats. This meeting was
the last held.
Meetings of an unimportant character, even
as regarded from a strictly local point of view,
were held at various places in the county during
the first half of the eighteenth century. Amers-
ham was the scene of races annually from 1729
to 1734 inclusive; Olney in the years 1734,
1737 and 1739 ; Gerrards Cross in 1734, and
West Wycombe in 1736. The sport at these
was not of a nature to require notice.
STEEPLECHASING
The Vale of Aylesbury has been the scene of
jump races from an early period. In November,
1 834, there was a steeplechase over four miles of
the best part of the Vale in which the best
horses of the day took part. Captain Becher on
Captain Lamb's famous chaser,Vivian, beating the
equally famous Grimaldi and Lancet ; the fences
were very stiff and Vivian gave his rider a ducking
and fell over a gate during the race. At a later
period ' Aylesbury Aristocratic Steeplechases '
became one of the most popular jump-race meet-
ings in the south of England. Pratt's Club held
a meeting in the Vale in 1859 ; there were three
events, two confined to members of the club and
the third open to men who hunted with the
packs of hounds in the neighbourhood. For a
number of years the undergraduates of Oxford
and Cambridge had steeplechases, the course lying
over Mr. Fowler's farm. The arrangements in
the 'fifties seem to have been far from perfect,
but defects of this kind did not prevent large
fields from turning out and the enjoyment of
good sport. In 1863 there was a two-day meet-
ing ; the first race was for undergraduates, and
another for ' veterans,' former members of the
Universities ; this year also saw a match between
Oxford and Cambridge, three a side, twelve stone
each, for a £50 cup : Cambridge won. Lord
Rothschild used to be a strong supporter of the
Aylesbury meeting ; for several years he gave a
service of plate open to the farmers in the county ;
but in the 'sixties the meeting began to fall into
disrepute though the sport had in no way declined
either as regarded quantity or quality. In 1865
there were two days' racing, the events including
a ' Grand Match ' between the Universities.
Eight horses started,and Oxford won, Mr. Leathe's
Marchioness being first.
The spread of the railway system was no doubt
largely responsible for the decline of the 'Ayles-
bury Aristocratic Steeplechases ' ; the presence
in large numbers of young men from Oxford and
Cambridge offered an opportunity for bad charac-
ters which was not to be lost ; and a contempo-
rary report of the year 1866 says 'a more com-
plete collection of the Ishmaels of the turf was
probably never before brought together in so small
a compass.' There were two days' racing with
twelve events in 1866 ; an undergraduates' race
was run but no University match. In 1867 no
fewer than five of the ten races advertised were
open only to University men ; Oxford was
strongly represented but the total absence of
232
i
SPORT ANCIENT AND MODERN
Cambridge men seems to indicate that the
University authorities saw reason to exercise a
restraining influence. By 1870 the University
clement was diminishing and the meeting was,
we read, ' not attended with its usual success ; ' of
the ten events only two, the Undergraduates' and
Veterans* "Chases, were open to University men.
In 1874 the Aylesbury Meeting had ceased to
be described as 'Aristocratic ;' it received, how-
ever, a fillip in this year from the National Hunt
Committee which selected the course for the
Grand National Hunt Steeplechase. The course,
a very stiff one, had been modified for the occasion,
the wide ditches on the take-off side of fences
being hurdled up ; nevertheless, the fences were
formidable enough to give rise to objections and
several owners refused to start their horses. Of
seventy-three subscribers only twelve faced the
starter, the winner being a French bred five-year-
old named Lucellum, owned by Mr. Vyner and
ridden by Captain Smith. This year's meeting
was very successful ; there were no fewer than
fourteen races, including the Masters of Fox-
hounds 'Chase, open to horses nominated by
Masters of Foxhounds. Great things had been
hoped of the venture ; each master had been
invited to nominate the two best horses hunted
with his hounds and a large entry of the finest
hunters in the kingdom was anticipated ; nine
entrants, however, made up the field, and the
attempt to establish this event was not renewed.
The meeting of 1875 (again and for the last
time described as ' Aristocratic ') was postponed
by reason of frost, and the change of date had a
prejudicial effect ; thirteen races were advertised
for the two days but the sport shown was very
moderate indeed. The meeting of 1875 was the
last held until 1882 when it was revived under
National Hur.t rules with the support of the
Rothschild family and Lord Rosebery, among
others. The events are open to those who hunt
with the Grafton, Whaddon Chase, and Old Ber-
keley Foxhounds, and Lord Rothschild's Stag-
hounds ; and thanks largely to the keenness of
the farmers in the Vale the meeting continues a
very successful career.
SHOOTING
There appear to be in existence no game-
books relating to sport in the county of a date
earlier than 1825. The oldest records the
writer has been able to discover are those which
were kept by the late Mr. William Goodall, of
Dinton Hall, Aylesbury, grandfather of the
present owner, Colonel Goodall. Mr. Goodall's
game-book contains particulars of the bags
obtained from the years 1825 to 1830, and
though the period covered is so brief the entries
have as much value for the present purpose, as
records covering a longer space of time, since
they may be accepted as typical of the sport
obtained in pre-Victorian days on estates of
average size in Buckinghamshire. The manor
of Dinton extends to about 1,000 acres of arable
and grass land with a few small ponds, and
having as one of its borders the river Thame,
is therefore very fairly representative, inasmuch
as every species of game found in the county
occurs thereon. It may be added that the lands
have not materially altered in character since the
'twenties, as some other tracts have been changed
by drainage, etc.
The season's bag in those days ranged from
150 to 250 head, ten or a dozen brace of par-
tridges being the largest bag killed in one day.
In regard to this it must be said that the game-
book contains evidence that Mr. Goodall was
content to kill enough game for his household ;
he generally went out about twice a week. The
following entries show the nature of the bag : —
December, 1827, I hare, 2 rabbits, 2 snipe,
I jack snipe and I moorhen, I crow. 16 De-
cember, 1829, I rabbit, I pheasant, I snipe,
I jack snipe, I moorhen and I heron, I raven.
Other entries show that in addition to ordinary
game he shot water rail, quail (occasionally), and
various species of duck, including pochard, tufted
duck, shoveller, and teal.1 Snipe were then
much more numerous than they are now. The
' winged vermin,' destruction of which is noted
in the game book, were ravens, carrion crows,
and magpies.
It may be added that Colonel Goodall has at
Dinton Manor a collection of the sporting guns
which belonged to his ancestors. These wea-
pons, representing as they do the development of
the gun during a period of about 200 years, form
a collection of very exceptional interest.
Until about the middle of the nineteenth cen-
tury game was but little preserved in this county.
One of the most prominent game preservers of a
former generation was the late Sir George Dash-
wood, of West Wycombe Park, M.P. for High
Wycombe, who was in his prime about the
middle of last century. Sir George had an ex-
cellent kennel of pointers and setters ; he used
to ride a pony out shooting, dismounting when
his dogs pointed game. It is doubtful whether
there is a pointer in the county at the present
day. When the writer began to shoot (his first
licence was taken out in 1874), his uncle, Sir
1 Mr. Goodall, who died in 1844 at the age of 87,
was an accomplished naturalist, botanist, and artist.
He left fifty volumes of water-colour drawings of the
birds, animals, butterflies, and plants of the neigh-
bourhood.
233
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Walter Gilbey, kept a few pointers in Essex ; he
gave me one of his dogs and it worked for several
seasons ; my father shot over it in 1879, the last
time he carried a gun. In Buckinghamshire, as
elsewhere, the days of pointer and setter were
numbered, as far as partridges are concerned,
with the advent of the breech-loader.2
Little hand-rearing was done in the county at
the time the writer's father began shooting, about
1866 ; sportsmen then were satisfied with small
bags, and this seems to have been particularly the
casein Bucks ; perhaps this was due in some mea-
sure to the nature of the beechwoods which form
so large a proportion of the pheasant coverts.
There is little undergrowth in these woods, hence
the birds wander, rendering it a costly and un-
satisfactory business to raise a large head of game.
Mr. Gilbey preserved between 3,000 and 4,000
acres of shooting on the lands lying north of the
Great Western Railway. It extended from the
Biddies farm, near Burnham Beeches station, to
the Yew Tree at Hedgerley and embraced all
the Beeches, the ground now occupied by the
Burnham Golf Club, Lower Woods, Dorney
Wood, Egypt, and part of Hall Barn. The
following were the bags made in the later 'sixties;
they possess a certain interest as representing not
only the shooting obtained in the county forty
years ago, but the shooting obtained with the
earliest breech-loading guns : —
Phea-
sants
Part-
ridges
Hares
Rabbits
Wood-
cock
Snipe
1866 . .
. I85
389
109
456
12
2
1867 . .
• 339
181
107
735
22
3
1868 . .
• 452
241
64
1,047
7
1869 . .
• 367
377
76
874
'5
-
Concerning the item ' rabbits,' it must be men-
tioned that these were killed over a small pack
of beagles ; this is excellent sport, though it is
not a method that lends itself to the making of
large bags. In later years, as the game books
show, the number of pheasants killed was con-
siderably larger ; little hand-rearing was done in
the 'sixties on this shooting. The largest bag
before extensive rearing was adopted was one
made in the early 'seventies, namely 171 phea-
sants in Dorney Wood. Ten times as many
are now killed every season over this area, but
other game is less plentiful than it was in the
'sixties and 'seventies. The day's bag of part-
ridges varied from 15 to 25 brace to three or
four guns, who walked up the birds or shot them
over dogs ; driving was of course unknown. A
bag of 20 brace to a single gun in a day's shoot-
ing was an achievement considered worthy of
* I remember, when I was a boy living with a tutor
in Cheshire, walking with the late Duke of West-
minster when he shot the coverts near the vicarage
where I was living. The duke used a team of
Clumber spaniels; they were wonderfully broken, and
never ranged more than 20 yds. in front of the guns,
who shot in line.
record. Such a performance by Mr. Lowndes was
mentioned as a memorable feat in the Field fifty
years ago ; in what part of the county this bag
was made does not appear.
There has never been much shooting in the
county north of Aylesbury ; the late Sir Henry
Verney preserved at Claydon, but for the most
part the big woods are given over to the fox, and
the deep clays are not suitable for partridges.
In 1846 when the Prince Consort visited the
Duke of Buckingham at Stowe the bag included
70 hares. This, at the time, was thought to be
an extraordinary bag, but up to the passing of
the Ground Game Act much larger bags of hares
were made.
The late Lord Carrington confined his shoot-
ing to Gayhurst House, Newport Pagnel ;
practically speaking he did not preserve the game,
and five brace of partridges per gun was con-
sidered a good day's bag. The present owner,
Earl Carrington, gave up preserving in the north
of the county, and about 1868 began to devote
attention to preservation on his Wycombe es-
tates. Up to that date a hare was rarely seen
on these lands, and if one appeared, the chair-
makers, who ply their craft in the district, never
rested till they secured it. The Wycombe
Abbey estate now, having regard to its compara-
tively small extent, some 3,000 acres, affords
some of the best shooting in the county.
It was in 1869 that His Majesty paid his first
shooting visit to Wycombe. To show how
greatly the shooting had improved under Lord
Carrington 's control, it may be mentioned that in
November, 1882, the party, of which I had the
pleasure to be a member, who shot Gill Field
Lower Grounds and the Park, killed over
200 pheasants and 196 hares. In 1885, before
Lord Carrington left England to assume the
governorship of New South Wales, there was a
four days' shoot at Wycombe — an average of
seventy brace of partridges was killed on each
day.
It was Earl Carrington, if I mistake not, who
introduced the modern style of pheasant-shooting
in the county ; certainly it was at Wycombe
that I first saw the birds driven high over the
guns ; this was in the park below Daws Hil!
Lodge. The late General Owen Williams, so
well known on the Turf, was a member of the
party, and excited my envious admiration by the
regularity with which he brought down these
high birds. In 1887 Wycombe Abbey and the
shooting were let to Mr. Waring. That gentle-
man died suddenly, and some members of my
family joined with me to take the shooting. A
large head of game had been reared, and in thir-
teen days the bag was 2,538 pheasants, 683
partridges, 263 hares, and 599 rabbits. Lord
Carrington was kind enough to give me the
shooting in the season before his return, 1889-90,
and though particular care was taken to leave a
234
SPORT ANCIENT AND MODERN
good stock on the ground the bag amounted to
1,151 pheasants, 563 partridges, and 115 hares.
One day in the season 1905-6 four guns killed
5 1 brace of partridges, driving.
The late Mr. Frank Wheeler had some good
partridge shooting between the Harrows, Hugh-
enden, and Hampden in the early eighties ; a
party, of which I had the pleasure of being a
member, got fifty brace in one day.
The late Mr. Cripps, chairman of Quarter
Sessions and the first chairman of the Bucks
County Council, also had some good shooting at
Parmoor. He was an excellent sportsman at the
time of which I write ; he kept a pack of
harriers, and on one occasion we started at 6.30
with them, killed a hare after a fair run, returned
to breakfast at 9.30, and an hour later Mr. Cripps,
his son Arthur and myself went out partridge
shooting, killing twelve brace. Mr. Cripps, who
was then seventy years of age, went home after
lunch and sought rest in reading a Greek play
with his eldest son Alfred, the present owner
of the property. This was a typical day at
Parmoor.
Partridge driving was practised in the eastern
counties before it came into vogue in Buckingham-
shire. My first day's driving in the county was in
October, 1882, at Wycombe, when Lord Car-
rington, Mr. Harpley and myself killed 34 brace.
There are certainly fewer partridges now than
there were twenty years ago. This is largely
due to the increase of grass, the planting of
woods, new railway lines, and the general de-
velopment of the country.
Since Hall Barn passed into Lord Burnham's
possession in 1881, the pheasant shooting on the
estate has been brought to a remarkable pitch of
perfection. The merit of the shoots, in which
I have been privileged to take part every season
since the year mentioned, does not lie solely in
the magnitude of the bags made, but in the skil-
ful fashion whereby advantage is taken of the
undulating nature of the ground to send the
pheasants high over the guns.
In November, 1892, H.R.H. the late Duke of
Cambridge, Lord Carrington, Lord Grenfell, Col.
Fitzgeorge, Col. R. Lane, Mr. A. Stuart Wort-
ley and the writer killed 1,077 head in Dipple
Wood ; later in the same season H.R.H. the
Prince of Wales was one of a party who killed
1,266 pheasants in Burtley Wood. Every year
since then His Majesty, the Prince of Wales, and
other members of the Royal family have visited
Hall Barn. In 1 903 the Burtley Wood shoot was
postponed until 28 January to meet the King's
convenience ; the bag, 1,290 pheasants, was
surely a ' record ' for so late a date. The guns
on this occasion were His Majesty, the Prince of
Wales, Lord Herbert Vane Tempest, the Hon.
Henry Chaplin, the Hon. H. Stonor, Captafn
the Hon. Seymour Fortescue, Captain Godfrey
Faussett and the writer. On an earlier day in
that month Prince Albert of Schleswig Holstein,
Lord Cheylesmore, Lord Burnham, the Hon. H.
Stonor, and the writer had bagged 900 pheasants
in Jennings' Hanging Woods. In 1905 His
Majesty's head keeper, being present as a spec-
tator at Lord Burnham's Burtley Wood shoot,
told me it was the best managed day he ever
saw.
On the last day's shooting I had at Hall Barn
— in January of this year — the guns were His
Majesty, the Prince of Wales, Col. the Hon. H.
Legge, Earl Howe, the Hon. H. Stonor and my-
self, and 1,900 pheasants were killed.
The partridge shooting on the Hall Barn
estate is fairly representative of that in the rest
of the county, only moderately good ; I have
never known a day's shooting produce over
60 brace.
Good sport with pheasants is enjoyed on other
estates in South Buckinghamshire ; at Greenlands
(the Hon. F. W. D. Smith), Danesfield (Mr. Hud-
son), Seymour Court (Mr. Wethered), Little
Marlow (Mr. Bradish Ellames), Shardeloes (Mr.
Tyrwhitt Drake), and the tenant of recent years
(Mr. Beckwith Smith), Wilton Park (Mr. White
and Lord Grenfell), Hughenden(Mr. Disraeli, and
latterly Lord Cheylesmore), and Langley Park
(Sir Robert Harvey and Mr. Howard Vyse, who
rented it). Cliveden, which now belongs to
Mr. Waldorf Astor, is very small — only 300
acres. In 1898, the last year of the duke's
ownership, Lord Desborough, Lord Grey, Mr.
Webster, Mr. G. Cross and the writer killed in
one day 300 pheasants, at that time the ' record '
for the Cliveden estate. On Hampden, the Earl
of Buckinghamshire's estate near Great Missen-
den, Latimer, Penn, Hedsor, and Dropmore,
good sporting pheasant shooting is obtained. It
does not seem necessary to give particulars of the
bags made ; this is a matter which depends so
greatly upon the amount of hand-rearing the
respective proprietors care to undertake. Given
a pleasant day, sport on the Chilterns is always
enjoyable irrespective of the size of the bag.
It cannot be said that this is a natural game
county, but in south Buckinghamshire the soil is
light, and birds do better than on the grass and
heavy clays which predominate north of Ayles-
bury. Hares have decreased greatly of later
years as a result of the Ground Game Act, and
rabbits have never been very numerous ; the
latter are not encouraged by reason of the great
mischief they do in the beechwoods. In the
light chalky soil of the hills the rabbits burrow
to a considerable depth, and the only way to
obtain sport is with the ferrets. I have never
seen more than 500 rabbits killed in a day's
shooting in the county, and it is quite possible to
shoot for a whole day in south Buckinghamshire
without seeing a rabbit.
235
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
ANGLING
In this county are neither salmon, sea trout,
nor the fish peculiar to deep lakes, such as char ;
but with these exceptions nearly every fresh-
water fish of importance to the angler occurs
either in the Thames and Coin in the south, in
the higher waters of the Great Ouse on the
north, or in the extensive sheets of water on
private properties. Until within the last few
years, Buckinghamshire could boast one of the
most remarkable trout streams in the kingdom,
namely the Wye or Wick, a little stream which
rises near West Wycombe, and, flowing by
High Wycombe, enters the Thames. There is
not probably in England a stream of the same
size which produces, naturally, such large and
well-conditioned trout. Unfortunately of late
years, the industries on its banks have so polluted
the Wick that the fish have been destroyed to a
very great extent. The baskets made in former
years by Mr. James Englefield serve to show its
merits. In 1 88 1 he killed thirty-four brace,
aggregating io81b. 3 oz., the two largest weigh-
ing 3 Ib. 14 oz. and 4 Ib. 2 oz. respectively ; in
1882, thirty-six brace weighing 108 Ib. 1 1 oz.; in
1883, sixty-four-and-a-half brace weighing 149 Ib.
15 oz. ; in 1 888 forty-three-and-a-half ; and
1889, forty-one-and-a-half-brace respectively.1
So high was the reputation of these Wick trout that
they were in great demand for the purpose of
stocking other waters, and many hundreds have
been placed in the Thames and elsewhere.
Pollution, chiefly from mills, has seriously affected
the Coin from a little above Uxbridge to its
junction with the Thames. It is naturally a
clear and very beautiful stream, prolific in trout
and most kinds of coarse fish which grow to a
considerable size. Grayling have been intro-
duced of late years by the Friendly Anglers'
Society, and proof that they are breeding has
been forthcoming in the capture of some young
fish. The principal places on the Coin are
Iver, Colnbrook and Wraysbury. Fishing rights
over much of the river are held by London
angling societies — the True Waltonians, the
Friendly Anglers, the Piscatorial Society of
London and the Walford Piscatorial Society.
The Coin enters the Thames just above Staines.
It was at Delaford on the Coin that the ill-fated
National Fish Culture Association had a fishery
a good many years ago. White fish (Corregoni)
and rainbow trout (Salmo irideus) were imported
from America, but breeding operations were
conducted on a very small scale, and produced
no result of any importance. There is also a
good deal of fishing in the Misbourn, a little
tributary which rises above Great Missenden and
enters the Coin just above Uxbridge, flowing
1 The FieU, Jan. 1902.
by Amersham, Chalfont and Chalfont St. Peter.
At Shardeloes it expands into a considerable lake
which is well stocked with fish. Mention must
also be made of the Thame, the upper portion of
which flows through this county. It rises near
Stewkley, but it is not until Aylesbury is reached
that it begins to yield angling worthy of men-
tion. Next comes Cuddington and Thame, the
town giving its name to this tributary. For a
short distance the stream divides Buckingham-
shire from Oxfordshire, in which latter county
are its lower reaches, and its mouth at Dor-
chester. In parts it abounds in coarse fish, pike,
perch, roach, chub, &c. The Grand Junction
Canal runs from near Aylesbury to Leighton
Buzzard, and an arm of the canal links Bucking-
ham to Stony Stratford. These waters hold the
usual coarse fish in quantities greater or less and
have a reputation for large tench.
Hard by Staines the Thames begins to border
the county. Up to the City Stone the fisheries
are the property of the City of London, having
been presented to the ancient corporation by
King Richard I who informed that body he
did so
for the health of his own soul and for the soul's
health of King Henry his father and for all his
ancestors' souls and for the common weal of the City
of London and of all his realm.
A condition of the great charter was that all
weirs (i.e. fish traps) were to be utterly put down
in the Thames and Medway save only by the
sea coast. Thames fisheries have always been
considered of great importance. So long ago as
the reign of Henry IV, we find a statute
relating to the navigation, in which some protec-
tion was ordered to be given the fry of fish. Of
the general character of the angling from Staines
upwards, so far as Bucks is concerned it may be
said that barbel and bream grow scarce as we
ascend the river, while all other kinds of fishing
improve, trout being numerous only at those
places where they have been introduced or where
some trout-holding tributary enters the river.
The trout of such rivers as the Thames cannot
breed naturally to any extent in the main
stream ; their eggs are washed away by floods
and the young fry are devoured by coarse fish,
more especially by pike, perch and eels. The
Thames trout is, of course, the most notable
fish in the river ; there is probably a larger stock
of these fish now than ever before. This is due
to the efforts of the various preservation societies
which, on the Upper Thames, have spent over
£14,000 in improving the fisheries. Much of
this money has been devoted to the purchase or
breeding of trout. Thames trout fishing begins
236
SPORT ANCIENT AND MODERN
on I April and ends on 4 September. Most of
the largest fish are caught by spinning, with live
bait, or by barbel fishers who have baited a weir-
pool with worms. Many a trout, well con-
ditioned if small, has been caught with a salmon
fly in the weir-pools, while on the shallows
below them smaller flies of the standard pattern,
alders, red palmers, and so forth, are occasionally
used. It cannot be said, however, that the fly
fishing for Thames trout is good or even fair ;
indeed little can be done with the fly rod except
on such shallows as remain undisturbed by the
summer traffic. Near Magna Charta island are
some noted barbel swims. The weirs and their
streams in the neighbourhood of Windsor hold a
good many fine trout which were turned in by
the Windsor Angling Association. Fishing in
the neighbourhood of Windsor Park belongs to
the crown estates, and the right of fishing is
retained, at any rate so far as the towpath is
concerned. Boveney has long been a noted
place for trout. At Maidenhead the angling
rights over much of the river are in private
hands, a private right of fishing in the main
stream below Maidenhead Bridge having been
established by Mrs. Annie Smith in an action
brought against James Andrews, a professional
fisherman.1
At Maidenhead the fisheries are under the
care of the Maidenhead, Cookham and Bray
Thames Angling Association, which has placed
large quantities of trout and other fish in the
river. At Cookham the angling, judged from a
Thames standpoint, begins to be first-rate. It
' It is a well-established principle of law that
fisheries in a non-tidal though navigable river do not
become the property of the public however long the
public may have fished without let or hindrance ;
but such free fishing carried on for many years can be
put forward as evidence to show that the person
claiming the fishery is not in possession of it, the law
assuming that someone else is the owner. In the
Maidenhead case Sir Ford North, the presiding judge,
made the following statement on the subject : —
' There are very large portions of the river in which
the public are at liberty to fish, without fear of inter-
ference ; not from any right of their own, but
because the real proprietors of the soil and fishery
cannot trace and establish their title.' Of course the
owner of the bed or banks of the river is not
necessarily the owner of the fishery which may have
been granted in years gone by to anyone and is often
owned by the lord of the manor. Many owners of
fisheries to whose title there can be no question, act
very liberally towards the public, placing no obstacle
in the way of anglers. In other cases, however,
claims are made to Thames fisheries which it is
commonly believed will not bear investigation. The
Thames Preservation League, a branch of the Com-
mons Preservation Society, has for some time been
endeavouring to come to an amicable arrangement with
the owners of Thames fisheries with the object of once
and for all settling the question and removing the cause
of many disputes, and, occasionally, costly lawsuits.
is between this place and Bourne End that the
Wye or Wick above-mentioned flows into the
Thames, and formerly aided in keeping the river
stocked with trout. A little higher we come to
Great Marlow which has long been noted for
Thames trout, owing to the great number of
large fish which have been turned in by the
Marlow Angling Association. It was long the
policy of this association to turn in far larger fish
than those purchased by similar organizations,
and the results obtained have certainly justified
that course. It has been found that even two-
year-old trout from the fish culturists' ponds
when turned into the Thames do not always
survive : reared in artificial security they appear
unable to recognise their most dangerous natural
foes. Fish of from one-and-a-half to three
pounds, however — and some of this size have
been turned in — enjoy greater safety. From
Marlow up to Medmenham Abbey is one of the
choicest pieces of Thames fishing. The Hurley
pools contain all kinds of fish and produce some
magnificent trout and very fair bags of barbel.
Perch are numerous, as are chub and roach.
Hurley is within the district of the Henley-on-
Thames and District Preservation Society which
has introduced, among other fish, bream and
Loch Leven trout into this portion of the
Thames. Bream are occasionally caught, but
these fish do not appear to have bred in any
number. Just below Medmenham Abbey the
fishing is extremely good ; above the abbey by
Magpie Island there are swims which offer
opportunities to the chub fisher ; while in the
sharp running water below Hambleden lock we
again reach favourite haunts of trout. At the
mill-tail at this point is the mouth of a little
intermittent burn which has the reputation of
running for three years and then remaining dry
for a like period. In the eighties, however, it
flowed for nine successive years, with the result
that Thames trout ran up it and bred so freely
that the stream became a most valuable feeder for
the main river and was used for piscicultural
operations by the Henley Fishery Association.
A large number of Loch Leven trout were bred
from eggs presented by the late Sir James
Maitland, Bart., of Howictoun. In time the
stream again dried up and the decrease in the
quantity of trout was soon noticeable. A little
above Hambleden, by Greenlands so long the
residence of the late Mr. W. H. Smith, M.P.,
there is good pike fishing in winter, and the
Regatta Reach which commences near the
island of that name contains a considerable
number of large chub and a fair number of other
fish, including some very large trout. Near
Fawley Court, and about opposite Remenham
Farm, a short distance up the Regatta Reach,
the boundary of the county is reached.
A notable feature of Thames angling is the
gudgeon fishing. Many anglers in summer
237
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
devote themselves almost entirely to this sport.
Unfortunately the gudgeon, like some other fish,
have much decreased in numbers of late years,
but from six to twelve dozen are even now
caught from a single punt during a day's angling.3
Twenty years ago as many as twenty dozen fish
were often taken from a punt in the course of a
day. Tench fishing in some parts of the river
is exceedingly good, and although very few fish
are caught the reason is to be found in the fact
that few anglers devote the necessary time and
expense to baiting those swims in which tench
are found. The Thames methods of using a
paternoster and of casting out spinning and other
baits are known all the world over. Of late
years the Trent methods of casting from the
reel for pike and what is termed ' long corking'
for chub and barbel has come into vogue.
The Thames fishery regulations, which are
exceedingly stringent, were drawn up by the
Thames Conservators after consultation with
the various angling preservation societies. The
close season for coarse fish commences on
1 5 March and terminates on 1 5 June. Netting
is strictly prohibited except for bait with nets of
small size. Owners of private fisheries may use
one or two specified nets of small size with large
mesh, but this is a privilege of little value and
of which they very rarely avail themselves.
One other river in Buckinghamshire remains
for mention, namely, the Great Ouse, which rises
on the border of the county near Blackney, and
flows across it by Buckingham, Stony Stratford,
and near Newport Pagnel and Olney, and thence
into Bedfordshire. This portion of the Ouse
contains all the usual coarse fish except barbel.
The fishing is of the same character as the
Thames, but on the whole somewhat better,
though the fish are neither so large nor so numer-
ous as in Huntingdonshire and Bedfordshire where
the river increases in size.
In the hope of ascertaining whether salmon
can ascend the river, the Thames Salmon Asso-
ciation, of which the chairman is Lord Des-
borough, during a period of four or five years
turned some thousands of salmon smolts into the
lower reaches of the Thames. The work must
be regarded as purely experimental, and no posi-
tive results have been obtained. The main ques-
tion seems to be whether the pollution of the
* It is believed that the steam launch traffic, to
which of late has been added that of the motor boat,
is very destructive to the spawn and young fry of
fish.
estuary is such that the salmon will or will not
enter its waters. Smelts (not to be confounded
with salmon smolts) come up from the sea as
far as Teddington, a fact which suggests there
is nothing in the Thames estuary actually destruc-
tive to fish life. The condition of the estuary has
of late years been much improved by the work of
the London County Council, in purifying sewage,
but the waste products from chemical works are
inimical to fish life.
The Thames Salmon Association has more
recently introduced a continental species of
salmon into the Thames, the Salmo Hucho of
the Danube and other rivers. It is believed that
this species does not migrate to the sea. It is
too soon yet to report on the results of the
experiment. Among other new fish, the rain-
bow trout (Salmon irideui) should be mentioned.
One of over 3 Ib. in weight was caught at
Abingdon in 1907. Not many have been
placed in the Thames.
In this connexion it must be noticed that the
latest authentic records of indigenous Thames
salmon refer to this county. The Rev. George
Venables in his Records of Buckinghamshire repro-
duces the daily log of an old fisherman who lived
and plied his calling at Boulter's Lock ; it con-
tains particulars of the annual catch of salmon in
this part of the river from the year 1794 to 1821
inclusive. The catches varied greatly : to select
a few examples in 1794 fifteen fish, weighing
148 Ib. were taken ; in 1801 the total was sixty-
six fish weighing 1,124 ^., the greatest number
taken during the series of twenty-six seasons ; in
1804, sixty-two fish were caught, and in the
following year only seven ; 1812 was the best
for seven years, eighteen fish weighing 224 Ib.
being taken; in 1816 the catch totalled fourteen,
weighing 179 Ib., and thereafter the annual
return never exceeded five salmon and those were
caught in 1820; two, weighing 31 Ib. were
taken at Boulter's Weir in 1821, and these two
were the last native salmon caught in the Thames,
so far as is known. Thames salmon appear to
have decreased both in number and size, says
Lord Desborough, of Taplow Court, about the
middle of the eighteenth century ; but in the
season of 1780 over fifty fish were caught in the
reach opposite Cliveden Springs by one fisherman,
and others were equally successful in other por-
tions of the river. Thames salmon commanded
a high price a century ago : in 1 808, Lord Des-
borough states, a fish of 1 8 Ib. was sold for
£ 7 45., or 8;. per pound.
238
SPORT ANCIENT AND MODERN
CRICKET
Despite the efforts of Mr. P. J. de Paravicini,
Buckinghamshire up to 1908 has never taken an
important position even among the second-class
counties. The cricket of Eton College, however,
deserves more space than the exigencies of this
work will permit. In contrasting the results
with those of its chief opponents, Harrow and
Winchester, it must be borne in mind that the
river furnishes a formidable counter-attraction at
Eton. Until quite recently when Agar's Plough
became the school ground, the home matches
were played in Upper Club, Winchester being
met out and home in alternate years, and Harrow
always at Lord's. After 1866, for thirty years,
the Eton eleven was managed by the late Mr. R.
A. H. Mitchell ; he has been succeeded in most
satisfactory fashion by Mr. C. M. Wells.
Of the eighty matches played up to 1908 with
Harrow, Eton had won thirty-one and Harrow
thirty-four, seventeen having been drawn. By
scoring 183 for Eton in 1904, Mr. D. C. Boles
created a new record for the match, beating 152
made by Mr. Emilius Bayley, now the Rev. Sir
John Robert Laurie, in 1841. The other cen-
turies for Eton have been 120 by Mr. B. J. T. Bo-
sanquet in 1896; 117 by Mr. A. W. Ridley in
1871 ; 114 by Mr. C. P. Foley in 1886; 113
by Mr. W. F. Forbes in 1876 ; 108 by the late
Mr. C. J.Ottaway in 1869; 101 by Mr. H.C.
Pilkington in 1896; and 100 by Mr. E. N. S.
Crankshaw in 1903. There have been eight
Harrovian centuries. The largest Etonian totals
have been 406 in 1904; 386 in 1896 ; 365 in
1906 and 308 in 1845, 1871, and 1876.
Harrow has six times exceeded 300.
The chief Etonian bowling successes against
Harrow have been : —
«873)
1879
1880)
i88ij
1883
1884)
1885}
1886)
1887}
1888
1893
1894
1903
F. M. Buckland |
C. T. Studd .
P. de Paravicini >
Hon. A. E. Par-
ker ...
E. G. Bromley
Martin .
H. R. Bromley)
Davenport J
H. W. Studd .
H. R. E. Harri-
son . . .
F. H. E. Cun-
liffe . . .
C. E. Hatfield .
6 for 35 and 6 for 42 ; 4
for 63 and 5 for 64
6 for 28
5 for 50 and 7 for 42 ; 6
for 42 and 6 for 57
8 for 37
6 for 46 and z for 48 ; 6
for 88 and 4 for 49
5 for 79 and 4 for 73 ; 6 for
44 and 2 for 67
6 for 27 and 8 for 72
6 for 29 and 3 for 26
7 for 54 and 6 for 40
5 for 35 and 7 for 58
Of the seventy-six matches played with Win-
chester to 1908, Eton has won twenty-five and
lost twenty-four, eight being drawn, with a tie
in 1845. The centuries for Eton have been in
1863, when the total was 444 ; A. Lubbock 1 74
not out, and E. W. Tritton 130 ; in 1874 when
the total was 381; H. E. Whitmore 109, and
Hon. A. Lyttelton 104 ; the latter in 1875 scored
IO2; in 1885 H. Philipson scored 141 ; in 1886
Hon. H. Coventry 119; in 1887 the late W. D.
Llewellyn 124, and in 1905 W. N. Todd 134.
The only Wykehamist centuries have been in
1852, E. R. Trevilian 126; in 1892, J. R. Mason
147, and in 1901, E. L. Wright 113. The
home matches played by Eton are generally
with I Zingari, M.C.C. and Ground, Free
Foresters, New College, Oxford, Windsor Gar-
rison, &c.
The following old Etonians have played in
Test Matches in England: — Lord Harris, Hon.
Alfred Lyttelton, C.T. Studd, and B. J.T. Bosan-
quet ; while the following have been on tour to
Australia : — Lord Harris, Hon. Ivo Bligh (now
Lord Darnley), C. T. Studd, G. B. Studd, Lord
Hawke, A. E. Newton, H. Philipson, P. R.
Johnson, B. J. T. Bosanquet. The following
have represented the Gentlemen at Lord's since
1878: — Lord Harris, Lord Hawke, Hon. Alfred
Lyttelton, A. W. Ridley, Hon. Ivo Bligh (now
Lord Darnley), C. T. Studd, G. B. Studd, W.
F. Forbes, P. J. de Paravicini, H. W. Bainbridge,
H. W. Forster, F. Marchant, H. Philipson, Lord
George Scott, A. E. Newton, F. H. E. Cunliffe,
and B. J. T. Bosanquet ; and the following have
represented the Gentlemen against the Austra-
lians : — Lord Harris, Hon. Edward Lyttelton,
Hon. Alfred Lyttelton, G. B. Studd, C. T. Studd,
and Lord Hawke.
Since 1878 the following old Etonians have
found places in the Oxford eleven : — W. F.
Forbes, A. E. Newton, H. W. Forster, H. Philip-
son, Lord George Scott, the late W. D. Llewellyn,
the late D. H. Forbes, R. T. Jones, C. C. and
H. C. Pilkington, F. H. E. Cunliffe, B. J. T.
Bosanquet, C. H. B. Marsham, H. A. Arkwright,
W. Findlay, G. E. Martin, R. V. Buxton, A. M.
and F. H. Hollins. In the Cambridge eleven :
J. E. K., G. B., C. T., and R. A. Studd, H.
Whitfeld, Hon. Ivo Bligh, C. W. Foley, Lord
Hawke, P. J. de Paravicini, H. W. Bainbridge,
Hon. C. M. Knatchbull Hugessen, F. Mar-
chant, F. Thomas, H. J. Mordaunt, W. C.
Bridgeman, R. C. Gosling, H. R. Bromley-
Davenport, H. K. Longman, E. F. Penn, C. P.
Foley, H. W. de Zoete, P. R. Johnson, and
P. W. Cobbold.
The writer as an old Etonian may be per-
mitted to add : floreat Etona, ftoreat flortbit.
239
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
GOLF
The ranges of hilly country in the Chilterns,
which stretch across Buckinghamshire from the
southern extremity of Bedfordshire to the southern
part of Oxfordshire, make an admirably diversified
ground for golf. The soils are a mixture of rich
loam, clay, chalky mould and loam, lying upon a
subsoil of gravel ; and in certain districts some of
these soils are largely intermingled. At any rate
they grow turf which is highly suitable for the game.
The Burnham Beeches Golf Club, which was
founded in 1892, owes its existence to Mr. F. C.
D. Haggard, Dr. A. E. Wilmot, Mr. F. C. Carr-
Gomm, Dr. Abercrombie, and other gentlemen.
At the present time it has 250 ordinary members,
6 life members, 50 provisional members and 100
lady members. The course of 1 8 holes is situated
2 miles from Taplow, and 4^ miles from Slough.
The holes are laid out on undulating pasture
land ; and viewed as a whole, the course provides
an admirable variety of play. The holes vary in
length from a little over 100 yards to 500 yards,
but the most interesting are those varying in
length from 300 to 430 yards. There are
also several very interesting short holes, and the
natural hazards have been skilfully supplemented
by artificial ' pot ' bunkers which turn to the best
account the natural lie of the land. The soil
being gravel, the course even in winter is per-
fectly dry, making play possible all the year round.
The game indeed is most largely played in the
autumn, winter, and spring. H. R. Chestney is
the professional.
Among the half-dozen clubs in the county,
probably the next in importance is the Datchet
Club, instituted in 1894, and the members of
which now number 150. The course of 9
holes, which vary in length from 1 74 to 420 yards,
is situated on the right side of the road from
Datchet to Windsor. The holes are laid out
over pasture land, and the hazards are partly
natural and partly artificial.
The Chesham Club, instituted in 1900, plays
over a g-hole course, situated on Ley Hill Com-
mon, 2 miles from Chesham, while at Grovebury,
2 miles from the railway station, the Leighton
Buzzard and District Club, founded in September
1905, have also laid out a course of 9 holes. For
several years up to the opening of 1906, the
West Wycombe Club played over a g-hole course
laid out on Downley Common about a mile
from West Wycombe railway station ; the
hazards consisting of gravel pits, ponds, roads,
and whins. This club ceased to exist in Feb-
ruary 1906. The Wycombe and Bourne End
Club, founded in 1 904, plays over a g-hole course
laid out on Flackwell Heath.
ROWING
HENLEY REGATTA
The meeting at which the establishment of
Henley Regatta was determined on was held in
the Town Hall of Henley on 26 March, 1839.
The importance of the fixture lies in the prestige
which attaches to a victory in its best race ; this
race has long been considered the ' Blue Ribbon '
of the amateur rowing world among prizes which
are open to competitors other than those from
the two universities. If proof of this were
needed it would be sufficient to say that at the
time of writing, the Grand Challenge Cup, first
offered for competition nearly seventy years ago,
is now in the possession of a Belgian crew.
It will, perhaps, be convenient to give the
slight sketch of the history of the regatta which
the space available alone permits, in the form of a
chronological list of the most important develop-
ments since 1839. In that year Trinity, Wad-
ham, and Brasenose Colleges entered from
Oxford for the Grand Challenge, which was
won by the first named, the only other race
being the Town Challenge Cup Fours. In the
next year Wadham rowed again and were beaten
by the eventual winners, the famous Leander
Club, whose first appearance this was on the
Henley reach. This year (1840) is also memor-
able for the fact that the District Challenge Cup
for Fours was won by a Henley crew stroked by
Mr. J. Page.1 In 1841 occurred the first race
for the Stewards' Cup, which was won by the
Oxford Club of London ; and in 1842 we find
the Cambridge University Boat Club beaten in
the final heat for the Grand Challenge. It has,
of course, long ceased to be the practice for
university crews, as such, to race at Henley.
Perhaps the most important event connected
with university rowing on the Henley course was
the celebrated episode of the Oxford seven-oar in
1843. In the final heat this crew was drawn
1 It may be mentioned that Mr. Page, who was
born before Waterloo, was present in the Town Hall
in July, 1907, when a testimonial from the rowing
men of England was presented to Mr. Herbert Thomas
Steward, the president of the Henley stewards.
240
SPORT ANCIENT AND MODERN
against an eight which rowed under the name of
the Cambridge Subscription Rooms, London, and
was entirely composed of men who had either
got their ' blue ' already or won it directly
afterwards. It was, in fact, a strengthened
university eight. The Oxford crew lost their
stroke, Mr. Fletcher Menzies, through illness,
just before the start, so they put in their No. 7
(the brother of Tom Hughes of Oriel) at stroke,
called down Lowndes of Christchurch from bow
to seven, and left bow's seat vacant. With only
seven oars they won by nearly a length. Part
of their boat is still preserved in the Oxford
University Barge.
In 1844 the Diamond Sculls were instituted,
and were first won by T. B. Bumsted of London.
In the next year two more races were added,
namely, the Ladies' Plate, first won by St.
George's Club of London, and the Silver
Wherries, afterwards known as the Silver
Goblets, for pairs, which were first won by Mann
and Arnold, of Caius. In 1847 the Wyfold
Challenge Cup was first offered for eights ; this
event did not become a four-oar race until 1855,
when 'Royal Chester' won it. In 1848 the
Visitors' Cup for fours was instituted and won
by Christchurch. In 1849 Wadham College,
Oxford, which had made its mark at the first
regatta ten years earlier, carried off both the
Grand and the Ladies'.
By 1850 the regatta had attained to an im-
portance which justified the framing for the first
time of ' Laws of Boat Racing,' by which the
various crews engaged to abide ; and this legisla-
tion no doubt laid the foundation of that world-
wide influence which the stewards have exercised
in the matter of amateurism and fair sport. In
the following year the Prince Consort recognized
the existence and value of this influence by
becoming a patron of what was henceforth to be
known as Henley Royal Regatta.
These early meetings, which seem to have
generally taken place about the beginning or
middle of June, had apparently become famous
for the bad weather which attended them. But
in 1856 the unaccustomed sunshine which was
vouchsafed the regatta seemed appropriate to the
first appearance of a boat which practically
revolutionized the art of building racing craft.
This was the keelless ship designed by Matt
Taylor for the Royal Chester crew, who proved
her excellence by winning the Grand Challenge
and the Ladies' Plate. In the next year the
Visitors' and the Ladies' Plate were apparently
restricted to the public schools and the colleges
of Oxford or Cambridge or Dublin University.
But this regulation, if it ever were such, cannot
have been observed, inasmuch as in 1878 a crew
from Columbia College, New York, was not
only permitted to enter for the Visitors but won
the cup and carried it across the Atlantic.
The year 1861 witnessed a feature which
ever since has been one of the most popular races
of the regatta ; this was the race in which Eton
rowed against and beat Radley for the first time.
Eton has beaten Radley regularly ever since ;
but it is only right to say that there have been
many very close finishes. In 1883, for instance,
Eton only got home first because No. 4 in the
Radley boat broke his slide at Remenham ; and
in 1891 when both crews were in the final,
Radley was only beaten by a short half-length by
an Eton crew including C. M. Pitman and
W. E. Crum, besides other good oars. Radley
has been coached for the last few decades by
Mr. H. M. Evans, and the good done to English
rowing by Dr. E. Warre at Eton can best be
measured by the number of his pupils who have
become members of both university crews. At
the Henley of 1 866, for instance, out of twenty-
eight medals given for eights and fours, twenty-
seven were won by nineteen Etonians ; and of
the nineteen no fewer than seventeen were
Dr. Warre's pupils. Though Dr. Warre has
now retired from active coaching, his influence
on oarsmanship is still very strong, particularly in
the direction of scientific boat-building.
In 1868 the stewards as a body gained much
in the estimation of the rowing world by electing
Mr. Playford and Dr. Warre to be of their
number. The same year saw two important
innovations : the Thames Cup — now one of the
most popular races at the regatta — was established,
being won by Pembroke College, Oxford ; and
in the race for the Stewards' Fours the revolu-
tionary mind of W. B. Woodgate, the famous
old Radleian, initiated the idea of coxswainless
fours ; the astonished authorities being obliged to
disqualify Brasenose because their gallant steers-
man leapt into the water at the word ' go.' This
proceeding led to legislation in the next season,
and in 1869 a cup was specially given for Cox-
swainless Fours, which was won, appropriately
enough, by a crew with another old Radleian at
stroke, T. H. A. Houblon, now canon of Christ-
church. The rules for the regatta were also
thoroughly revised, and a steam launch was used
for the first time to carry the umpire (Mr. George
Morrison) up and down the course ; he had
previously been dependent upon crews of water-
men. The improved system of starting races —
from punts in which watermen held the sterns
of each boat — had been adopted by 1868, and
about the same time the boat-house for the use
of competitors was built. In 1872 the last of
the great developments in the construction of
racing boats occurred, sliding seats being used for
the first time at Henley. By 1874 the Stewards',
the Visitors', and the Wyfolds* were all being
rowed in coxswainless boats.
In 1877 Radley beat Cheltenham in a private
match for which special medals were given ;
such private matches have occasionally formed a
feature in the regatta ever since.
241
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
In 1878 the appearance at Henley of the
Shoewaecaemette Four, which lost the Stewards',
and of the Columbia crew, which won the
Visitors', brought up the question of foreign
entries. The result was the adoption of legisla-
tion with regard to foreign crews, more especially
with regard to the definition of an 'amateur.'
In this year was started a new race for fours
called the Public Schools Challenge Cup, to be
rowed on fixed seats ; Cheltenham beat Radley
in the final of the first race. In 1885 the
stewards very rightly discontinued this prize,
which was passed on to another meeting.
The business of conducting the regatta became
heavier as more and more races were added, and
in 1 88 1 a committee of management was
appointed to deal with its affairs. A signifi-
cant tribute to the value of the work performed
by the Henley Committee was paid them by the
International Olympic Committee, who awarded
the Henley officials the cup allotted to that body
which had done most during the preceding year
for promoting the amateur sport of the world.
This valuable trophy was handed over to the
stewards during the regatta of 1907 by Lord
Desborough. The presentation of this cup,
which had only been awarded once before,
exemplified in a very striking way the grati-
tude felt by amateur oarsmen all over the
world to the Henley authorities, and it could not
have been made in a more appropriate year than
that in which English oarsmen had testified, by
the gift of a gold replica of the Grand Challenge
Cup, their appreciation of the long and arduous
services rendered by Mr. Herbert T. Steward in
perfecting every detail of the regatta.
Another famous name in the annals of
Henley makes its appearance in 1885 ; in that
year Mr. Guy Nickalls first rowed for Eton, and
won the Ladies' Plate. In 1907 the same oars-
man was in the Magdalen crew which beat
Leander in the final of the Stewards' ; he had
not rowed in every regatta between those two
dates, but had taken part in thirteen successive
years. After apparently retiring in 1897 he
came out again with undiminished vigour and
success in 1905, 1906, and 1907. No one can
boast so fine a record of Henley prizes as
Mr. Guy Nickalls, who has also four times
held the amateur championship as winner of the
Wingfield Sculls, and has rowed five times in the
Oxford crew, being successful on two occasions
against Cambridge.
By 1886 it had become necessary to extend
the regatta to three days, and twenty years later
four days were necessary to get through the
programme. It was in 1886 that the greatest
change in the course took place ; before that
year crews had to go round the point and finish
near Henley Bridge, giving a palpably unfair
advantage to the Berkshire shore ; in this year a
waterway was piled out of exactly the same
length (i mile and 550 yards), but starting just
below the tail of the island and finishing at the
upper end of Phyllis Court Wall. This water-
way, which is about 1 50 ft. wide, remains the
course at the time of writing. The only other
necessary improvement was added when the
executive determined on the addition of long
booms between each post from start to finish.
This innovation has proved invaluable ; not only
does it keep the course clear of the vast crowd of
boats, it enables two races to be rowed within
the short interval of only five minutes whenever
necessary, and saves the spectators in boat, punt,
or canoe from the wash of the umpire's launch.
The advantage of the Buckinghamshire shore
over the Berkshire station has always been a
matter for discussion, but as a matter of fact this
is not extraordinary, unless there happens to be
a very strong breeze ofF the Buckinghamshire
shore, when the boat on that station is able to
enjoy the shelter of the bushes. In 1906 — a
year remarkable for fine weather and almost
perfect conditions — the Buckinghamshire station
won thirty-one times and the Berkshire won
twenty-four times. In 1907 — which was re-
markable for extraordinarily bad weather — Buck-
inghamshire won thirty-five times and Berkshire
twenty-seven times. From these figures either
side can derive whatever arguments may suit
them. It may be added that the natural course
of the stream is direct from the bridge upon the
projecting wall of Phyllis Court grounds, nearly
opposite Poplar Point ; then obliquely towards
the gate below the point ; and then still more
obliquely and more quietly to the overhanging
trees near Fawley Court, leaving comparatively
dead water for some distance below the grounds
of Fawley Court. The stream becomes stronger
as it approaches the island, but is much sharper
on the Buckinghamshire side than in the Berk-
shire channel.
In 1887 our present king and queen — then
Prince and Princess of Wales — visited the new
course with a large party of royalties. In 1894
the rules concerning amateurism and boat-racing
received a further most important revision. In
1 902, owing to the regretted retirement of
Colonel Frank Willan, captain of the Oxford
Four, which had beaten Harvard on the tide-
way, the present umpires — Mr. Frederick Pitman,
the famous Cambridge stroke and sculler, and
Mr. W. A. L. Fletcher, D.S.O., of Oxford-
were appointed. The judge is Mr. Frederick
Fenner, who has probably held that office in
various races on the Thames longer than any
other living man. It was in 1902 that, in
pursuance of their resolute policy of keeping
rowing the purest sport in England, the Henley
stewards stopped professional coaching in all
except sculling races, in which such assistance is
usually essential during practice. But it should
be noted that Mr. Kelly, whose sculling record
242
SPORT ANCIENT AND MODERN
is the finest performance at the regatta, never
used professional help. In 1906 the stewards
appointed as official time-keepers Mr. H. Elling-
ton, London R.C., and Mr. Theodore A. Cook,
O.U.B.C. The records for the various races,
corrected up to II July, 1907, are as follows : —
Rice
Holder*
Date
Finish
Grand .
f Leander (P. London)
(New College (v. Leander)
•
•
1891
I897
6.5I
6.5,
Ladies . .
Eton (v. Emmanuel)
.
1892
7-i
Thames
London (v. Thames)
,
1886
7-8
Stewards .
f Leander (r. New College)
\Third Trinity (v. Winnipeg)
•
1897
1904.
7-30
7.30
Visitors . .
New College (v. University College)
1898
7-37
Wyfolds
Burton (P. Kingston) ....
1902
7-43
Goblets .
(Barclay and Muttlebury (v. The McLeans) .
Johnstone & R. Powell (v. Graham & Kelly)
1887
1906
8.15
8.15
Diamonds . .
Kelly (v. Blackstaffe)
1905
8-10
ATHLETICS
Sports have been held in various towns and
villages for very many years ; but some of the
older meetings have ceased to exist. Some thirty
years ago, a famous fixture was held annually at
Olney. The races were run on a rather rough
up and down hill grass course, which militated
against fast times ; but the results were seldom
lacking in interest. It was at the Olney sports
in the early seventies that James Gibb, after-
wards four mile champion of England, made his
first appearance as a lad of sixteen. He was
handicapped liberally on account of his youth,
and easily won the mile. In the following year
he was placed at scratch, and again won, a per-
formance which he repeated for two years in suc-
cession. The Bucks Constabulary meeting
is a highly popular one, its open events being
always well supported by athletes of good class.
Other good meetings, which have been long
established, are those at Aylesbury, Leighton
Buzzard, High Wycombe, Newport Pagnel
(whence came another famous ex-champion, C.
Pearce), Stony Stratford, Chesham, Buckingham,
and Amersham. The oldest of all the paper-
chasing clubs, the Thames Hare and Hounds,
which has been established nearly forty years, chose
a route across country, from High Wycombe to
Princes Risborough, for one of their outlying runs.
243
AYL
\, %••''•••....... .-^S
DESBOROUCH
INDEX MAP
to the
HUNDREDS
of
BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
TOPOGRAPHY
THE THREE HUNDREDS OF AYLESBURY
(RISBOROUGH, STONE, AYLESBURY)
RISBOROUGH HUNDRED
CONTAINING THE PARISHES OF
BLEDLOW WITH BLEDLOW HORSENDEN RISBOROUGH, PRINCES
RIDGE RISBOROUGH, MONKS
STONE HUNDRED
CONTAINING THE PARISHES OF
CUDDINGTON HAMPDEN, GREAT KIMBLE, GREAT
DINTON WITH FORD AND HAMPDEN, LITTLE KIMBLE, LITTLE
UPTON HARTWELL STONE
HADDENHAM
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
CONTAINING THE PARISHES OF
ASTON CLINTON HULCOTT WESTON TURVILLE1
BIERTON WITH BROUGHTON LEE
BUCKLAND MISSENDEN, GREAT AYLESBURY WITH WAL-
ELLESBOROUGH MISSENDEN, LITTLE TON
HALTON STOKE MANDEVILLE WENDOVER
The county of Buckingham was divided into eighteen hundreds at the
time of Domesday Survey. At the close of the I3th century, however, they
had become consolidated into eight groups of three hundreds.' Of the older
divisions, the Hundreds of Aylesbury, Risborough, and Stone formed the Three
Hundreds of Aylesbury, containing twenty-seven parishes.8
Practically no change has taken place in the bounds of the Three Hun-
dreds since Domesday Book, but the parishes of Cuddington, Little
Hampden, Hulcott, and Lee are not named in the Survey.4 Marlow,
however, seems to have been included under the Hundred of Stone in the
entry of Walter de Vernon's lands, but this was probably merely an omission
of the heading of Desborough Hundred,' since elsewhere in the Survey
Marlow is placed in the last-mentioned hundred." The Liberty of Brand's
1 Pop. Ret. 1831, i, 25, 26. * Feint. Aidi, i, 89. 'Ibid.
4 y.C.H. Bucks, i, Dom. Map. • Ibid, i, 260*. ' 'Ibid, i, 265^.
245
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Fee in Aylesbury Hundred is in the parish of Hughenden in Desborough
Hundred (q.v.).
The Hundred of Risborough contained the four parishes of Bledlow,
Horsenden, Monks Risborough, and Princes Risborough. The parishes con-
tained in the other two hundreds varied, however, at different times ; in 1316
the Hundred of Aylesbury contained Aston Clinton, Aylesbury, Buckland,
Broughton and Hulcott, Ellesborough, Halton, Great Missenden, Little Mis-
senden, Stoke Mandeville with Hallinge, Wendover, and Weston Turville.7
The Hundred of Stone at the same date contained Dinton, Haddenham with
Cuddington, Great Hampden, Hartwell and Little Hampden, Great Kimble,
Little Kimble, Stone, and Upton.8 Dinton parish spread into the two Hun-
dreds of Desborough and Ashendon, the liberty of Moreton being in the
former and Aston Mullins and Walldridge in the latter hundred.
' Feud, Aids, i, 112.
•Ibid. 113.
THREE HUNDREDS
of
STONE RISBOROUCH
AND
AYLESBURY
246
RISBOROUGH HUNDRED
BLEDLOW
HUNDRED OF RISBOROUGH
BLEDLOW
Bledelai (xi cent.) ; BleJelaw (xiii cent.).
Bledlow parish lies on the western boundary of
Buckinghamshire. It is nearly separated from the
other parishes in the Three Hundreds of Aylesbury by
a piece of Desborough Hundred, which lies between
the parishes of Bledlow and Horsenden. The southern
end of the parish lies on the Chiltern Hills, and is
called Bledlow Ridge, being between 600 ft. and
800 ft.' above the Ordnance datum. The lower
Icknield Way runs parallel to the line of the high
ground from north-east to south-west, along the north
and west sides of the parish, and the village and
church stand back from it about half a mile on the
lower slopes of the hill;. Close to the east end of
the church is a steep wooded combe called the Lyde,
in which several springs break out from the chalk and
form a small pool. The nearness of the church to
th: steep banks of the combe has suggested a local
rhyme —
They that live and do abide
Shall lee the church fall in the LyJc,
but fortunately this disaster does not seem very
imminent. The brook running from the pool is
called the Lyde Brook, and is used for two paper-
mills, BleJiow Mill and North Mill. The western
boundary of the parish is formed by Cuttle Brook,
which run< south to the River Thame.
The higher slopes of the hills are in parts well
wooded, and in one of the open spaces, on the north
slope of Wain Hill, is the Bledlow Cross, cut in the
turf, and visible for miles as a landmark.*
The village is picturesque, its small houses, sur-
rounded by gardens, lying for the most part along the
side of the hill, but there are outlying houses in the
lower ground on the side roads which join the
Icknield Way.
The subsoil on the hills is chalk, and in the northern
part of the parish Upper Greensand and Gault.1 The
surface soil is partly chalk loam, and partly stiff clay.
The inhabitants are mainly engaged in arable farming,
the parish containing 2,694$- acrcs of arable land, and
963 acres of permanent grass.' There are several
poultry farms, and in the Lyde there are watercress
beds. The paper-mills of Mr. A. H. James provide
occupation for part of the population. Both the
Upper and Lower Icknield Ways pass across the parish,
and the Wycombe branch of the Great Western Rail-
way runs through it, with a station one mile to the
north of Bledlow village. There are six hamlets in
the parish. Of these Bledlow Ridge has been formed
into a separate ecclesiastical parish since 1 868. The
other hamlets are Pitch Green, Rout's Green, Forty
Green, Skittle Green, Holly Green. The whole civil
parish contains 4,168} acres.*
Amongst the vicars of Bledlow the name of Ti mothy
Hall (1637 ?~9o) occurs. He held the livings of
Horsenden, Princes Risborough, and Bledlow in suc-
cession, being presented to the last named in 1674.
Three years later he became rector of Allhallows
Barking. He published the Royal Declaration for
Liberty of Conic. ence in 1687, and the next year became
titular Bishop of Oxford. He was consecrated, but
the canons of Christ Church refused to install him.
On the accession of William of Orange he refused to
take the oaths, but yielding at the last moment retained
his titular bishopric until his death.4
In the time of King Edward the
MANORS Confessor, Edmer Atule, one of the
royal thegns, held the manor of BLED-
LOHT, and could sell it at will.7 William the Con-
queror, however, granted it to his half-brother, Robert,
Count of Mortain, who held it in 1086.' William
the son of Count Robert joined the rebellion of Robert
of Bellesme against Henry I, and in conscqi-ence for-
feited his lands in 1104.* The honour of Mortain
was known in Buckinghamshire and the neighbouring
counties as the honour of Berkhampstead,10 but it
seems probable that Bledlow was separated from the
honour, since it was held, at least from the time of
Henry II, from the king in chief," and not from the
varijus grantees of Berkhampstead."
The privileges attaching to the honour of Mortain
however still continued in Bledlow.1* Henry II ap-
pears to have granted the manor to Hugh de Gurnay
before 1 177," but in I 198 Hugh made an exchange "
with the monks of Bee Hellouin in Normandy, by
which the manor passed to that alien abbey, and was
held in frankalmoign " in chief of the king.17
The priory of Ogbourne was an English cell of the
abbey of Bee, and the prior seems to have answered
for its English lands, and at times was described as
lord of the manor.1*
During the French wars of the 1 4th and I5th cen-
turies the lands of the alien priories were seized by
the king, and Ogbourne was ultimately dissolved by
Henry V. He granted the manor of Bledlow to his
brother John, Duke of Bedford,1* who died in I435,10
when it passed to Henry VI as his nephew and heir.
In 1462 the king granted it to his new foundation,
the College of St. Mary, Eton," the provost and
fellows of which college are at the present day the
lords of the manor.
In the 1 5th century the Hampdcns, of Great
Hampden, held CORHJMS M4NOR in Bledlow
under the provost and fellows of Eton College."
Thomas Hampden died seised of the manor in 1485."
His grandson John Hampden settled it on his younger
daughter and co-heiress Barbara, the wife of Sir
1 t'.C.H. Bueki. i, Geographical map.
• See y.C.H. Buck,, i, 189.
• y.C.H. Bucki. i, Geological map.
4 Inf. from Bd. of Agric, (1905).
• Ord. Surv.
• Diet. Nat. Bitg. M!T, 91.
' V.C.H. Buck,, i, 143*.
• Ibid.
. HIT*, ii, 165*.
>• y.C.H. Buclu. i, 111.
" Cf. FnJ. Aidi, i, 85, 97, 113.
11 Ibid, i, 107-31 i y.CM. Htrtt. ii,
165-7.
'• FtuJ. Aidi, i, 97.
" Pipe R. 13 Hen. II, m. 9 d.
** Hiit. MSS. Com. Rtf. U, App. i,
356* ; Auize R. 63, m. 19 4.
" TIIU dt Ntvill (Rec. Com.), 145.
247
'? FeuJ. Aidi, i, 85, 97, 113.
u Ibid, i, 113; Cat. Pat. 1381-5,
P- 354-
" Chan. Inq. p.m. 14 Hen. VI, no. 36.
*> Ibid.
11 Cat. Pat. 1461-7, p. 73.
11 Eich. Inq. p.m. bdle. 51, no. II.
" Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. l), niii, no.
47-
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
George Paulet," who obtained various confirmations
of the grant from the members of the Hampden
family.15
In 1585 Hampden Paulet16 sold this manor to
Roger Corham, and in 1624 it was held by William
Corham and his wife Jane.*7 They sold it in the
HAMPDEN. Argent
a saltire gules between
four eaglet azure.
PAUL»T. Sable three
swords set pilfuihe 'with
their hilts or.
same year to Alban Pigott and Ralph Pigott of Col-
wich,*8 in the parish of Waddesdon. Alban Pigott
apparently left three daughters,*9 but which of them
inherited Corham's manor does not appear. Daniel
Cox, jun., held the manor in 1703,*° but some years
later he sold it to Richard Badcock.31 The last men-
tion of the Badcocks is in 1823, when John Lovell
Badcock, with Anne and Susannah, probably his
sisters, made a settlement of the manor." The family
of Spiers also seems to have had some interest at this
time in Corham's manor. William Spiers, lessee of
the manor,33 subscribed to the building fund of the
chapel at Bledlow Ridge. In 1823 Thomas Spiers
was a party to the settlement made by the Badcocks.*4
It seems probable, however, that he was only a lessee
under the Badcocks, though he may have owned other
land in the parish. About 1826 the manor was sold,
possibly by the Badcocks, to Captain Wood, who
seems to have held it for more than thirty years.*5
The present owner of the manor is Mr. Robert
White, of Chinnor, Oxon, but the land is for the
most part enfranchised.36
Hugh de Gurnay appears to have kept certain
tenements in Bledlow after the exchange made with
the Abbot of Bee, since Juliana, the heiress of the
Gurnays, was summoned, when still a minor, to give
warranty for certain lands in the parish.37 She married
William Bardolf, and in 1285-6 she and her husband
attempted to recover the manor from the Abbot of
Bee,38 She claimed all the manor with its appurten-
ances except 5 messuages, I mill, and 2 carucates of
land, which presumably she already held. Finally the
abbot obtained a quit-claim from Juliana and William
Bardolf for 200 marks sterling. Her descendants held
rents in Bledlow without interruption till the begin-
ning of the 1 5th century, when Sir Thomas Bardolf
held the tenements above alluded to.39 The lands
retained by Hugh de Gurnay were the fees of Odo
of Bramoster and of John de Turri, who presumably
were military tenants.'0 In 1 1 80, before the grant
to Bee, John de Turri paid 10 marks for confirma-
tion of his land in Bledlow.41 In 1228 Richard de
Turri, together with the Prior of Ogbourne, brought
an action with regard to common rights over their
lands in Bledlow.4*
The whole manor of Bledlow, which was granted
to the Count of Mortain by the Conqueror, does not
seem to have been included in the grant to Hugh de
Gurnay.43 The family of de Rual or Druel held
certain land, afterwards known as MESLES or
DRUELS, in Bledlow, of the honour of Mortain in
the 1 3th century. Simon de Rual paid scutage for
land in Bledlow in 1236." This tenement seems to
have been the hamlet of Mosleye or Mesle, which
John Druel held in 1284—6" and in I3O2-3-46 His
son John Druel made a settlement in 1333 of the
messuage and rents in Bledlow,'7 by which there were
remainders to Giles son of John Druel, and his wife
Amabel daughter of Thomas de Reynes and their
issue, and in default to William brother of Giles and his
wife, another daughter of Thomas de Reynes. It is
not clear whether Giles and William were the sons or
brothers of John son of John Druel. In 1346 this
John and Roger Puttenham held the fee formerly
held by John Druel,48 but after this date the name of
Druel disappears. Like the manor of Horsenden,49
this land has a complicated history during the Wan of
the Roses. The manor of Mesles or Druels, as it was
called in the 1 5th century, appears to have come into
the possession of Edmund Hampden and John
Brekenoke.60 They demised it in 1458-9 to Sir
John Fray and William Brown,41 who in turn granted
it to John Leynham or Plomer and his wife Mar-
garet.5' Various releases and sales were afterwards
made,53 and in 1528 the manor had passed into the
possession of Sir Edward Don.54 He left an only
daughter and heiress who married Sir Thomas Jones,54
and his lands descended to his two granddaughters
Frances and Anne. In the division of their shares of
their property the manor of Druels came to Frances,
the wife of Ralph Lee.56 Together with their son
and heir Edward Donne Lee they settled the manor
on Thomas Lee,57 who died seised in I572.56 It
then reverted to Edward Donne Lee, who sold it
to William Quarendon.59 In 1583 Quarendon and
his wife Margaret held the manor.60 Afterwards
it was divided, presumably between two heiresses,
since John Franldyn in 1640 died seised of half the
84 Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 4 Edw. V ;
L. and P. Hen. Vlll, xiii (i), 1000.
** Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 4 Edw. V ;
Mich. 3 Edw. VI ; Mich. I & 2 Phil,
and Mary.
36 Recov. R. Mich. 27 Eliz. ; Feet of
F. Bucks. Mich. 27 Eliz.
"? Ibid. Trin. 21 Jas. I.
98 Ibid. ; Close, 17 Jas. I, pt. II ; pt. 7,
no. 30.
89 Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, i, 486.
80 Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. i Anne.
" Ibid. Mich, and Hil. 7 Geo. I.
82 Ibid. Mich. 4 Geo. IV.
88 Lipscomb, hist, of Bucks, ii.
84 Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 4 Geo. IV.
85 From information obtained at Bled-
low by Mr. C. O. Shilbeck. 86 Ibid.
8? Assize R. 55, m. 12.
88 Ibid. 63, m. 19 d.
" Chan. Inq. p.m. 23 Edw. I, no. 9 j
32 Edw. I, nos. 64-9 ; 3 Edw. Ill (ist
nos.), no. 66 ; 13 Ric. II, no. 6 ; 4 Hen.
IV, no. 39.
40 Assize R. 63, m. 19 d.
41 Pipe R. Bucks, and Beds. 26 Hen. II,
m. 9 d.
4a Maitland, Bracton's Note Bk. case
274.
48 V.C.H. Bucks, i, 243*.
44 Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 258*;
Assize R. 56, m. 23.
248
44 Feud. Aid;, i, 85.
46 Ibid, i, 97.
4? Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 6 Edw. III.
48 Feud. Aids, i, 123.
49 Cf. Horsenden.
60 Cal. Pat. 1467-77, p. 471.
"Ibid- "Ibid.
63 Close, 14 Edw. IV, m. 7 ; Feet of F.
Bucks. Mich. 14 Edw. IV.
54 Recov. R. Mich. 20 Hen. VIII.
« Cf. Horsenden.
M Feet of F. Bucks. East. 2 Eliz.
s? Ibid. East. 1 3 Eliz.
58 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), clx, no. 15.
59 Feet of F. Bucks. East. 22 Eliz.
60 Ibid. East. 25 Eliz.
RISBOROUGH HUNDRED
manor or farm of Mesles or Druels." The only trace
of this manor to be found in recent times was a wood
named Druels Wood, near Bledlow Ridge, which
has now been grubbed up.
In the 1 4th century the family of Fresel held an
estate known as FR4TSELLES in Bledlow. James
Fresel in 1316-17 made a settlement, by which he
settled this on himself for life, with remainder to
James his son and his issue ; in default with remainder
to another son, Thomas." This James Fresel was a
man of some importance in the county, being a
knight of the shire in I 329."
He also obtained an indult from Pope John XXII,
that his confessor should give him plenary remission
at the hour of death,64 and by his will left valuable
bequests to the church of Bledlow." His father's
name was Robert, but he does not appear as tenant
of land in Hledlow." In his will dated 1341 James
Fresel named only two sons, Edmund and James,87
but Thomas appears in the settlement mentioned
before, and was probably his father's heir, since he
succeeded to the greater part of the 'estates before
'343"
Elizabeth daughter of Thomas Fresel claimed
various tenements that her father had held in neigh-
bouring parishes in 1364 or 1365, and presumably
was his heiress." Some years later Richard ap Yenan
held lands and tenements called 'Freselles,' in Bled-
low," but it does not appear how he obtained them.
In 1524 Walter Curzon died seised of the manor of
Frayselles,71 which afterwards came into the possession
of George, Earl of Huntingdon, who sold it to Sir
Michael Dormer and John Goodwyn in 1537."
The Dormers held the manor" till 1584-5, when a
sale took place of the site of the manor of Frayselles,
which came into the hands of Edward East.74 This
sale probably included the whole manor, which was
held from this time by the lord of the Rectory Manor
(q.v.), and was apparently united with it." In the
i 5th century the manor was held of the Rector of
Bledlow,76 at that time the Dean and Chapter of the
Free Chapel of St. Stephen, Westminster." After
the Dissolution, however, it was apparently separated
from the rectory, and held, in Queen Elizabeth's
reign, of the honour of Ewelme by fealty and
rent."
There seems to have been a RECTORT M4NOR
of considerable size in Bledlow. There is no specific
mention of it until after the Restoration, though the
Fresels' property was said to be held of the rector in
the I 5th and l6th centuries." It evidently belonged
first to the abbey of Grestein, and subsequently to the
BLEDLOW
Free Chapel of St. Stephen, Westminster." After the
Dissolution the Rectory was granted to Thomas East
and Henry Hoblethome, who, however, surrendered
their lease in 1552."
Edward VI then gave a lease for twenty-one years
to Thomas Forster,8* but in 1562 or 1563 Queen
Elizabeth granted the Rectory to William Revett and
Thomas Bright and their heirs to hold in chief."
The following year, however, they had licence to
alienate it to Edward East." He made a settlement
in 1609,** by which it was held by him for his own
life, then to the use of Cecilia his wife for her life,
then to the use of the executors of his will for one
year, and then to the use of Edward Fitz Herbert."
Fitz Herbert predeceased Edward East and Brigit
Fitz Herbert,*7 probably his widow. She seems to
have married Sir Edmund Windsor, and to have held
the Rectory in 1630." William Fitz Herbert is men-
tioned at the same date," and he and his wife Anne
held it afterwards. He was sequestered during the
Civil War as a recusant, and compounded for Bled-
low Parsonage for £200 in 1647.** He seems, how-
ever, to have sold it to William Brereton and James
Blanks." The former was one of the trustees of Sir
John Fitz Herbert, father of William Fitz Herbert."
Great efforts seem to have been made by William
Fitz Herbert to preserve his lands by various sales,"1
but William Starbuck, minister of Bledlow and his
parishioners made complaints against him for com-
pounding for his estates in the parish at an under-
valuation.*4
Their object seems to have been to obtain posses-
sion themselves, for they offered to pay £300 for the
Rectory.95 After many inquiries Brereton and Blanks
succeeded in establishing their claim, and their lease
was judged good by Chief Justice St. John at the
Assizes. They were, therefore, discharged by the
Committee for Compounding." John Blanks re-
tained possession of the Rectory after the Restoration,97
when the estate was called ' the manor of the Rectory of
Bledlowe.' * His granddaughter and heiress married
Johnshall Crosse.99 She was succeeded by her son
Henry,100 who married Elizabeth Jodrell,"" and their
fourth son Thomas held the manor in 1745."" He
died without children, his heir being his sister, the
wife of William Hayton."8 Her daughter married
Samuel Whitbread, who succeeded to the estate on
the death of his mother-in-law.104 Their son, another
Samuel, sold the manor in 1801 to Lord Carring-
ton,104 whose successor holds it at the present day.
At the time of the Domesday Survey there was
one mill in the parish, which yearly yielded to the
•' Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. l), cccczciv,
no. 48.
« Feet of T. Buckt. HiL 10 Edw. IL
« Col. Chit, I 317-30, p. 528.
M Col. if Papal Ltmrt, ii, 391.
•• Hiit. MSS. Com. Rip. a, App. i, 47*
"Ibid.
•Ubid.
•* Ctl. Pat. 1 343-5, p. 91 ; Awize R.
1431, m. cod.
" Ibid. 1451, m. 4;.
"° Chan. Inq. p.m. 4 Hen. V, no. 57.
"' Exch. Inq. p.m. bdle. 22, no. 6.
•* Feet of F. Buclci. Mich. 19 Hen.
VIII ; Recov. R. Mich. 29 Hen. VIII.
•• Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. z), liiiii,
no. 10 ; Feet of F. Bucks. Eatt. 4 Edw.
VI ; Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), XCY. no. 5j
ibid, cln, no. 2.
7« Feet of F. Buck*. HiL 17 Eliz.
" Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), cccxxxv,
no. 24 ; Feet of F. Buck*. Trin. 6 Chai.
I ; Trin. 1649; Mich. 165?.
7* Chan. Inq. p.m. 1 1 Hen. V, no. 7.
77 Exch. Inq. p.m. bdle. 72, no. 6.
7* Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), clxx, no. 2.
"• Ibid. 4 Hen. V, no. 57, file 254 ;
Exch. Inq. p.m. bdle. 12, no. 6.
" See 'Advowton.'
« Aca of P.C. 1552-4, p. 109.
•Ibid.
* Pat. J Elir. pt. 3.
« Ibid. 6 Eliz. pt. II.
" Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), CCCXZZT,
no. 24.
"Ibid.
•? Ibid.
« Feet of T. Bucks. Trin. 6 Chat. I.
249
•• Ibid.
•» Cal. of Com. for Compounding, 68.
11 Ibid. 1489. * Ibid. 1488.
» Feet of F. Buck*. Trin. 1649 ; ibid.
Mich. 1653.
•« Cal. of Com. for Compounding, 1489.
* Ibid. «• Ibid.
•7 Feet of F. Buckt. Mich. 18 Chat. II.
« Ibid. 24 Chat. II.
n Ibid. Eait. 32 Chat. II ; Trin.
IX Will. III.
»« Ibid.
«" Ibid. Div. Cot. Trin. 13 Ceo. II.
'« Recov. R. Mil. 19 Geo. II.
1M Feet of F. Di». Cot. Mich. 13
Geo. II ; cf. pedigree, Lipicomb, Hat, of
Bulks, v.
'« Ibid.
l<* Lyiont, Mapii Britannit,
32
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
lord of the manor twenty-four loads of malt.106 It
was presumably the same mill that Hugh de Gurnay
excepted from the grant of the manor to the abbey
of Bee, and which at that date, 1198, was held by
WHITHREAD. Argent CARRINGTON. Or a
a chevcron benueen three che-veron couflcchstd sa-
hinds' heads raxed gules, ble between three demi-
griffins sable, the rwo in
the chief face to facet
•with a molet gules for
difference.
Simon Hochede.107 In 1240-1 Alice, widow of
Simon, sued William Neirnuit for the third part of
certain tenements, a mill with its appurtenances being
specified.108 A second Simon, the heir, was in ward-
ship and Juliana de Gurnay, also a minor, was the
overlord of the tenements in question.109 Some years
later Nicholas Hochedee appears in a suit ao to land
in Bledlow, but the mill is not mentioned ; 110 in
1304, at the death of Hugh Bardolf, the rent of a
water-mill was held by Christiana, daughter of Regi-
nald de Hampden.111
In the 1 3th century the Abbot of Bee claimed to
hold view of frankpledge, gallows, waifs, and other
regalia in the manor of Bledlow, basing his right on
the grant of Hugh de Gurnay, his feoffbr, and its
confirmation by Henry II."1
The church of THE HOLT TRI-
CHURCHES NITr consists of a chancel 31 ft. by
1 6 ft. 6 in., a nave 44 ft. 1 1 in. by
1 5 ft. 1 1 in., north and south aisles respectively
8ft. 9^ in. and loft. loin, wide, a western tower
I 3 ft. 6 in. by I 3 ft. 4 in., and a south porch.
There is evidence of the existence at the east end
of the present north
aisle of a late 1 2th-
century transept, parts
of its north and east
walls remaining ; to the
east of it there seems
to have been a chapel,
entered through an
archway, the south re-
spond of which is still
in position. At this
time the church was
probably cruciform in
plan, consisting of a
chancel, central tower,
transepts, and a nave
about thirty feet by
f o u r t e e n feet, the
western wall of which
coincided with the
position of the east wall of the present tower.
During the course of the 1 3th century almost the
whole structure was rebuilt, the first work undertaken
being the north arcade and aisle of the nave. The
south arcade and aisle were probably added immedi-
ately afterwards, the central tower being destroyed
and a new tower begun at the west. Towards the
end of the 1 3th century the chancel was rebuilt and
enlarged to its present size, and the present tower was
completed, the aisles being extended to its western wall.
After this there were no further additions to the plan
except that of a south porch in the 1 4th century, but
windows were inserted at various points. The old
high-pitched roof was removed, probably at a late
date, and the existing roof substituted for it. The
present clearstory windows appear to be completely
modern, but the walls in which they are inserted
belong to the I3th century, and the windows them-
selves may have had prototypes of that date.
The east window of the chancel is of 13th-
century date, and consists of three shafted lancets
with an internal reveal, the shafts having moulded
circular capitals and bases. The lancets are of two
chamfered orders, and stilted. In the north and
south walls are small niches, with trefoiled heads, of
1 5th-century date, though much restored. That to
the south is a piscina, and the other now contains the
brass of William Herne, priest, 1525. Of the three
windows in this wall, the eastern is a single trefoiled
light and the second of two trefoiled lights with a
sixfoil over, both probably of the date of the wall.
That to the west is continued as a recess below its sill,
and pierced for a low side window. A scroll-moulded
string runs along the wall, and is broken downwards
just west of the middle window, at which point is in-
serted a crocketed and finialled pinnacle of later date.
The westernmost window of the south wall is of the
same general design and date as the middle window
of the north, but differs in having a moulded rear arch
and shafted jambs to its inner reveal, with circular
moulded capitals and bases. Further to the east is a
window of two trefoiled lights with a quatrefoil over,
of somewhat earlier type than the others, and between
the windows is a blocked priest's door, which is hid-
den by the organ, but externally is of 18th-century
Scale • of • feet-
PLAN OF HOLY TRINITY CHURCH, BLEDLOW
6 V.C.H. Bucks. \, 243*.
7 Assize R. 63, m. i6d.
"8 Ibid. 55, m. 12. ""Ibid.
»10 Feet of F. Bucks. Hil. 47 Hen. III.
250
111 Chan. Inq. p.m. 32 Edw. I, no. 643.
113 Plac. de Quo War. (Rec. Com.), 88.
RISBOROUGH HUNDRED
date, with white marble shafted jambs and moulded
two-centred head of poor imitation Gothic detail.
Below the window there is the same string-course as
on the north, with an inserted pinnacle opposite to
that in the north wall. Their intention is not clear,
as they are so near to the west of the chancel.
The chancel arch is of mid- 13th-century date, of
rather blunt two-centred form and two square orders,
with a plain roll label on the west side. Just above
the haunches of the arch are two early 15th-century
head corbels as supports to a rood beam which ran
across the top of the arch, the label being cut away to
allow for this. At the spring the label is also cut away
to allow for the rood loft, here supported upon plainer
corbels. The jambs of the arch are plain, with a
stopped chamfer, and the inner order is supported on
moulded half-octagonal capitals with corbels under,
carved into a face.
The nave is of four bays, and though the south
arcade is a trifle later than the north, the detail
throughout is the same. The arches are two-centred,
of two square orders, with a plain roll label towards
the nave. The columns are round, with circular
moulded bases on square plinths, and bell-shaped
capitals enriched with beautiful cinquefoiled and
trefoiled leaves in relief, and with octagonal abaci
square edged above. The capitals are all of the same
general style, but in some the leaves lie close to the
bell and in others are undercut. There are no re-
sponds, but the arches at the ends of the arcades
spring from corbels with semi-octagonal capitals. The
corbels on the north arc plain, but on the south are
foliated in the same way as the capitals.
The clearstory windows are modern, of three tre-
foiled lights under a flat lintel, but the openings are old.
They are six in number, three on either side of the nave.
In the external angle between the north aisle and
chancel is the south respond of a I zth-century open-
ing to a chapel east of the transept of the earlier
church, with a chamfered and beaded abacus. The
arch has completely disappeared, but a straight joint
in the east wall of the aisle on the outside suggests
the line of the north wall of this chapel, while a
partly built-up recess on the inside is evidently the
opening from the transept to the chapel. In this
recess has been inserted a late 14th-century window
of two trefoiled lights, with a square head and tre-
foiled spandrels. To the north of this window is a
rich but mutilated canopied niche of eirly 15th-cen-
tury date. In the north wall are three two-light
windows. The first and last are of similar design and
date to the south-east window in the chancel. Be-
tween them is a mid- 1 4th-century window of two
trefoiled lights with flowing tracery and a quatrefoil
over. A little west of this is a small north doorway
of early 13th-century date, with a semicircular head
of one square order and rather roughly-moulded
abaci. At the west end of the aisle is a half-arch
buttressing the east tower arch, so much restored ai
to appear modern.
The south aisle has a blocked east window, which
was apparently a late insertion ; externally the wall
has been rcfaced. At the cast end of the south wall
is a piscina with a plain two-centred chamfered head,
and in the same wall are three windows. The first
from the east is a very fine example of early- 1 4th-
BLEDLOW
century date. It is of four lancet lights, with trefoiled
subheads and oval quatrefoils in the lancets, the jambs,
head, mullions, and tracery being moulded internally
and externally, and there is an external label. Partly
under it is a mid- 14th-century tomb recess with
jambs and a low pointed arch of two wave-moulded
orders. The second window is of the same design
and date as the window opposite to it in the north
aisle. The south door, immediately west of this
window, is of the same date as the arcade, with a
two-centred head of three moulded orders, the inner
being continuous and the outer pair resting upon
detached circular shafts with moulded capitals and
bases. The third window is of two uncusped lights,
much restored, and is a 1 3th-century opening. At
the west end of the original aisle is a half-arch similar
to that on the north, but all of late- 1 ; th-century date.
It is of two chamfered orders, and springs from a
carved corbel capital.
The tower is of three stages, with a plain coped
parapet resting on a fine corbel table with grotesque
and mask corbels. The belfry openings, four in num-
ber, are of two uncusped lancet lights with a quatre-
foil over, set in a moulded reveal with a two-centred
head and a scroll label. In the second stage are
three small lancets of two chamfered orders, and on
the east face appears the steep weathering of the 1 3th-
century roof, the ridge of which reaches to the sill of
the belfry openings. In the north, south, and east
walls of the ground stage of the tower are arches
opening respectively into prolongations of the aisles
and to the nave. These arches are of two chamfered
orders, the outer continuous and the inner resting
upon half-octagonal pilasters with moulded capitals
and bases. The west window in this stage is of two
cinquefoiled lights, with cusped tracery over ; the
cusping has been mutilated, but the window is appar-
ently of 14th-century date. The west door, of some-
what later date, has continuous wave-mouldings of
two orders, with an external label.
The part of the north aisle flanking the tower is lit
by a small 14th-century trefoiled light in the west
wall. The corresponding space on the south of the
tower is used as a baptistery, and is lit on the south
by a modern window of two trefoiled lights, and on
the west by a small, much-restored round-headed
window of doubtful date.
The south porch has a wide outer arch of two
moulded orders, of good 14th-century detail, and the
porch has stone benches on the east and west, and at
the north-east a small square holy water stone.
The font is of late 12th-century date, of local type,
with a circular scalloped bowl on a square base formed
like an inverted cushion capital and ornamented with
foliage in lunette panels, and the short stem is circular,
with cable mouldings. The roofs throughout are
very plain, of low pitch, covered with lead, and may
possibly be of I 5th-century date. There are no pews,
the nave and aisles being filled with chairs, and the
chancel stalls, rood screen, and pulpit are modern. At
the east end of the south aisle is a 17th-century altar
table and a late carved wood eagle lectern. In the
same place is preserved a curious 18th-century carved
wooden candle and candlestick. The candle is
painted, and the candlestick with its clawed foot and
the candle-flame are gilt.'"
u* Thi« appear* to be one of the
'three ihim tapen in candleitickt carved
and gilt' which Mood in 1785 on the
pediment over the attar-piece. It it now
251
laid to have been for UK at funcrali
See Y.C.U. Bucki. \, 34.1.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
The brass already referred to in the chancel bears
the figure of a priest in mass vestments and the in-
scription : ' Hie jacet dns Willrn Herri in artibus
baculari' nuper vicarius istius ecclie qui obiit anno dni
millmo quingetesimo xxv. cuius ale propicietur deus
amen.'
There are considerable traces of painting through-
out the church. Over the chancel arch was a paint-
ing of the Doom, and on the walls of the nave are
traces of an early vine design and a masonry pattern.
On the north wall of the north aisle is a large figure
of St. Christopher. There is very little painted
glass, but the quatrefoil in the head of the window to
the south-west in the chancel is complete in 14th-
century glass of conventional design.
The tower contains five bells, the treble dated
1636, and the second, third, and fourth 1683, the
last bearing the inscription ' Richard Keene cast this
ring.' The fifth was cast by W. & J. Taylor in 1842.
The church plate comprises an Elizabethan cup of
1569 ; a salver, the gift of John Cross in 1693, hall-
marked for 1689 ; a small standing paten of which
the date letter is almost illegible, but appears to be
that for 1668 ; a flagon inscribed as the gift of John
Blankes in 1672, and hall-marked for the same date ;
and a plated cup.
The first book of the registers contains all entries
between 1592 and 1 706 except in the case of burials,
which run to 1705. The second contains all entries
between 1707 and 1755 excepting marriages, which
run to 1752. A third book has marriages between
1754 and 1787; a fourth baptisms and burials
between 1756 and 1812, and a fifth marriages between
1787 and 1812.
The church of St Paul, Bledlow Ridge, is built of
flint with Bath stone dressings in the 1 3th-century
style. It consists of chancel and nave with south
porch and western bell-turret containing one bell.
It was consecrated in 1868, but the register dates
from 1 86 1.
The church of the Holy Spirit is
ADVQWSQN mentioned in 1 284,'" and the same
invocation appears in James Fresel's
will in 1 34 1, '"but at the present day it has been
changed to the church of the Holy Trinity. It was
granted to the abbey of Grestein in Normandy in the
time of Robert Count of Mortain.115 As lord of the
manor of Bledlow he granted certain tithes from his
demesne lands to the abbey, then the patron of the
church. The English possessions of this house were
held by the Prior of Wilmington, and were seized by
Edward III as part of the temporalities of an alien
house before 1338 during the French War.116 The
Abbot of Grestein, however, in 1358 or 1359 granted
ro John Taleworth, burgess of Wycombe, and his heirs
in annuity of £50 and the advowson of Bledlow
Church.117 This grant can only have been enjoyed
for a short time, if indeed at all, since in 1361
Edward III granted the church to the Free Chapel of
St. Stephen, Westminster. The vicarage was ordained
in 1405 under Bishop Repingdon, and appropriated
to St. Stephen's.118
After the dissolution of the Free Chapel the
rectory and advowson of the church were granted to
Thomas East and Henry Hoblethorne,119 since which
time the advowson has always been held by the lay
rectors.
James Fresel in 1341 bequeathed £20 for covering
the chapel of St. Margaret at Bledlow with lead, and
various smaller sums for the maintenance of lights
there in the church of Bledlow.1*0 No further men-
tion of this chapel is found, but in 1590 a chapel at
Bledlow Ridge, with a close called the ' chappel
yard,' was granted to 'fishing grantees,' so that
apparently it had fallen into disuse before that date.1"
No mention of it occurs in the Buckinghamshire Chan-
try Certificates, so that it was apparently not merely a
chantry chapel. A chapel was built in 1834 for the
inhabitants of the hamlet of Bledlow Ridge. It was
formed into the separate ecclesiastical parish of
St. Paul's, and was endowed out of the Common
Fund in 1868 and 1870.'" The living is a vicarage
in the gift of the Peache trustees.
There are two Wesleyan chapels in the parish, one
at Bledlow and the other at Bledlow Ridge.
In 1618 Henry East by his will,
CHARITIES proved in the Archdeaconry Court of
Buckingham, charged his tenement
and close, called Picked Close, with an annuity of
2O/. for four poor widows at Lady Day and Michael-
mas. The annuity is paid by Mrs. Saunders of
Maidenhead, the owner of the property charged, and
5/. a year is given to each of four poor widows.
This parish is entitled to share in Henry Smith's
General Charity. In 1906 the sum of £9 was
allotted from the Thurlaston estate, Leicestershire,
and applied in the distribution of seventeen pairs of
blankets.
In 1671 John Blanks by will demised certain lands
in the parish, the rents after payment of 101. to the
vicar for a sermon on 27 December yearly, and
2/. 6tt. to the parish clerk, to be distributed in bread.
The property now consists of 33. or. 38 p., known
as Ford's Close, let at £4 io/. a year, and 2 a. I r. 17 p.
adjoining the workhouse school gardens, known as
the Poor's Piece, let to twenty-two allotment holders,
producing £7 3/. a year. The distribution in bread
is made in conjunction with the income of Edmund
Slaughter's Charity mentioned below.
In 1672 Margaret Babham by will directed that
£100 should be laid out in land, and that out of the
profits 4o.r. a year should be applied in providing two
poor men and two poor women with coats to be
marked with her initials M. and B., and 101. to the
vicar for a sermon on the anniversary of her burial,
30 April 1672 (old style) and 21. to the parish clerk
for keeping her tomb clean. The principal sum
became a charge on a farm in the parish known as
Sand-pit Farm, now belonging to Mr. R. White, who
pays the fixed sum of £2 1 2/. a year. By an order
of the Charity Commissioners made under the Local
Government Act, 1894, the endowments of this and
the preceding charity for ecclesiastical purposes were
separated from the charities for the poor, and trustees
appointed for their respective administration. In
1905 the sum of 40.1. was applied in the distribution
of flannel to twelve poor people, chiefly women.
In 1831 Edmund Slaughter by his will, proved in
113 Feet of F. Bucks. East. 12 Edw. I.
114 Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. ix, App, 470.
115 De Banco R. 55, m. 50.
116 Cal. Pat. 1338-40, p. 85.
"7 Close, 32 Edw. Ill, m. 2.
118 Line. Epis. Reg. Repingdon, Inst,
fol. 457.
119 Actt ofP.C. 1552-4, p. 209.
252
120 Hiit. MSS. Com. R,p. in, App. i, 474.
m Pat. 33 Eliz. pt. I, m. 34.
1MZW. Gas. 1 8 June 1869, p. 3474;
22 July 1870, p. 3484.
o
to
u
1
3
X
u
--
X
U
—
RISBOROUGH HUNDRED
HORSENDEN
the P.C.C. on the 26 July, directed his executors to
invest £100 in the public funds, the income to be
applied in the distribution of bread. The trust fund
consists of £119 6s. 8</. consols, with the official
trustees, and the annual dividends, amounting to
£z I9/. &/., were in 1906 applied, with the net in-
come of John Blanks' Charity mentioned above, in
the distribution of 639 loaves.
Charity of Elizabeth Eustace. — See under Princes
Risborough. The sum of £\ y. it received yearly
from the trustees, of which £i is applied in the dis-
tribution of four sheets at $1. each, and Is. is re-
tained by each of the three local trustees in pursuance
of the directions in the deed.
The Coal Charity, otherwise the Poor's Land, con-
sists of about 26 acres, including five cottages known
as the Colony Cottages, awarded to the poor in
1812 under the Bledlow Intlosure Act, producing
about £30 a year. In 1906 a distribution of 30 tons
of coal was made.
HORSENDEN
Honendene (xi cent.)
The parish of Horsenden lies in the south-west
of the Vale of Aylcsbury. The land is well watered
by a small stream flowing north, that breaks into
many branches near the village. It forms a small lake
in the grounds of Horsenden House, and supplies
the water in the moat. From the village the stream
flows north to Longwick hamlet. The houses are
few and scattered, and there is a good deal of well-
grown timber in the parish. The subsoil ' is Upper
Greensand, and the surface loamy. The occupation
of the people is agricultural ; there are 220} acres of
arable land, 252$ permanent pasture, and 9 acres of
wood.'
A cross road from the High Wycombe and Aylcs-
bury road runs north through Horsenden parish and
meets the Lower Icknield Way in the north of the
parish.
The nearest station is at Princes Risborough, on
the Great Western and Great Central lines.
Horsenden House is said to have been garrisoned
in the Civil War for King Charles by Sir John Den-
ham.' It was rebuilt in 1810, and shows nothing of
antiquity beyond the lines of the moat.
Robert Braybrook was rector of the parish in the
1 4th century. He afterwards became Bishop of
London, and played an important part in the struggle
between Richard II and his barons. He supported
severe measures against the Lollards, but also attempted
to purify the precincts of St. Paul's Cathedral, de-
nouncing those who bought and sold or played games
there. He died in 1404..'
In the time of King Edward the Con-
M4NOR fessor, the manor of HORSENDEN was
held by three socmen.* Two of these, hold-
ing 2 hides of land, were men of Earl Harold, and
the third, with 4 hides and 3 virgates, was a man of
IngolJ. All of them could sell their land. After
the Norman Conquest, however, this land was gran ted
to the Count of Mortain,' and formed part of the
honour of Mortain, but it does not seem to have
followed the descent of the honour.* Horsenden
appears to have been granted to John de Montagu,
who held many of the Mortain lands.8 He held the
manor as mesne-lord in 1210,' but joined the barons'
party against King John, and forfeited his lands in
1216.'° A few years later this land was held of
Robert de Cogfeud," but the overlordship seems sub-
sequently to have lapsed.
In 1086 the manor was held of the Count of
Mortain by a tenant named Ralph." He may
have been the ancestor of the family who took
their name from the place and held it in the 1 2th
century. In 1210 John de Horsenden " granted all
his land in the parish to Robert de Braybrook, the
head of the Braybrook family and sheriff of Bedford-
shire and Buckinghamshire during part of the reign of
John." Both he and his son and heir Henry are
mentioned among the evil counsellors of John at the
time of the Interdict ;" but Henry, after his father's
death, joined the barons' party, and was one of those
whom the pope excommunicated by name after his
reconciliation with the king." Henry's lands were
confiscated, and Horsenden was granted to Philip de
Pery, and later to Philip Giser ;" however, in 1217,
after the battle of Lincoln, Henry made his peace
with the young king," and his possessions were
regranted him. He held the manor in 1225, and
had a long law-suit with Alice, the widow of John de
Horsenden, over her dower," the question not being
settled till 1231."
Henry was succeeded by his eldest son Wischard."
Walter the :on of Wischard left two daughters as
his heirs, and Alice the elder married Sir William
Latimer." He held the manor as mesne lord in
1284," and his descendant, William Latimer, is
mentioned in the same position in 1 360."
The manor was held in demesne by a younger
branch of the Braybrook family. John de Braybrook,"
the younger brother of Henry, held it after the death
of his father. Gerard his son held it in 1284-6,™
and their descendants" held it uninterruptedly
. Buckt. i, Geological Map.
' Inf. from Bd. of Agric. (190;).
• Lviont, Mag. Brit, i, 581.
4 Did. fi'ai. Bag. vi, 243.
• Y.C.H. Bucki. i, 143*.
• Ibid.
•> Cf. Bledlow .nd y.C.H. Him. i,
165 -7.
• Tnu de Nrvill (Rec. Com.), 28, 36,
162, 201.
' Feet of F. Buck*. 12 John.
10 Rot. Lit. Ptt. (Rec. Com.), 196.
11 Tnu dt Ntvill (Rrc. Com.), 14;.
u V.C.H. Buck, i, 24 3 J.
" Pipe Roll, 12 John, m. id. j Feet of
F. Buckt. 12 John.
14 P. R.O. Liu tf Sktriffi.
14 Roger of Wendorer, Flora Hiit. iii,
*37-
" Ibid.
" Rot. Lit. Claui. (Rec. Com.), i, 116,
*4J-
'« Ibid. 321.
" Curia Regii R. 92, m. 16.
«° Feet of F. Buck*. 16 Hen. III.
253
u Dugdale, Baronage oj EngUj Colt
Inq. f.m. Hen. Ill, 781, 916.
» Ibid.
« Feud. Aidi, i, 8$.
M Chan. Inq. p.m. 33 Edw. Ill (itt
not.), no. 31.
u Chan. Mite. 49, file I, no. 1 9 ;
Tent dt Ntvill (Rec. Com.), 254.
» Ftud. Aidi, i, 85.
"Ibid, i, 112; De Banco R. 15;,
m. 66 d. ; Chart R. 7 Edw. Ill, m. 7,
no. 33 ; Chan. Inq. p.m. 33 Edw. Ill
(itt not.), no. 31.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
until the male line came to an end with Sir Gerard
Bra/brook, who died before i^z.13 He demised the
manor to the Dean and Chapter of St. Paul's, London,
and others in 14.26,™ and in 1432 Sir William
LATIMIR.
cross paty or.
Gula a
BRAYBROOK. Argent
seven voided lozenges
gulei
Beauchamp and Elizabeth his wife, the eldest co-
heiress of Sir Gerard Braybrook,30 released all their
right in the manor31 to the Dean and Chapter. For
nearly one hundred years the history of the manor is
obscure : it appears to have been granted by the Dean
and Chapter to John Ferity, Nicholas Wotton, Thomas
Knolles, John Hampden of Kimble, and two others
in I437.31 In 1458-9 John Brekenok of Horsenden
and others (John Hampden of Kimble being again
named) granted it to Sir John Leynham or Plomer."
Various settlements were made by him on his mar-
riage,31 and he was jointly seised of the manor with
his wife Margaret." They had no children,36 and
granted the manor to Thomas Gaune and others to
hold to the use of John Morton, Bishop of Ely, Lord
Hastings, Ralph Hastings, and others," presumably
after the death of Sir John.38
He died in I48o,39 and the next year the manor
was conveyed to the grantees to the uses named in
the previous charter.40 Which of these grantees had
actual seisin of the manor does not appear, but early
in the 1 6th century it came into the possession
of the Donnes, probably by grant of Sir George
Hastings." In 1529 it was held by Sir Edward
Donne,4* but he left no son.43 His daughter, who
seems to have predeceased him, was the wife of Sir
Thomas Jones, and had two daughters ; Anne, who
married John Cotton of Whittington, Gloucester-
shire, and Frances, who married Robert Lee.44
Horsenden formed part of Anne's share of their
inheritance," and continued in the Cotton family.
It was held successively by Richard,46 William,47 and
Ralph,43 the sons of John and Anne.
Ralph, who matriculated at Hart Hall, Oxford, in
1572, and entered at the Inner Temple in 1580,"
married Apolina Childe.50 His only son, Don, died
in his lifetime,51 leaving two daughters Anne and
Apolina, who thus became their grandfather's heiresses.52
Anne, to whose share Horsenden fell, married Sir
John Denham,53 the author of Cooper's Hill, who had
by her '£500 per annum, one son, and two daughters.'41
Denham was active in the royal cause during the Civil
War, and, consequently, lost his property and estates,"
Horsenden being bought by John Fielder in l654.:6
At the Restoration Denham seems to have re-
covered it,57 for in 1662 he sold it to John Grubbe,58
whose descendants59 held the manor until 184.1,™
when another John Grubbe sold it to the Duke of
Buckingham and Chandos. The latter mortgaged it
almost immediately,61 and the holders of the mort-
gage, the Norwich Union Office, foreclosed and sold
it in 1842 or 1843 to the
Rev. William Edwards Part-
ridge, who held it till his
death in 1886." The manor
then passed into the possession
of his daughter and heiress,
Mrs. Leonard Jaques, the pre-
sent owner of the manor.
On the division of the in-
heritance of Sir Edward Donne
between his two granddaugh-
ters,63 although the manor of
GRUBEE. Ermine a
chief battled gules and
three roses or therein.
Horsenden passed to the eldest,
£2,000 charged on the manor
appears to have been part of the share of Frances,64
the younger heiress, the wife of Robert Lee. The
debt had come by assignment to William Page of
Westminster in 1654,^ when the manor was among
the lands forfeited to the Commonwealth. In order
to remove this obstruction in the sale of the manor,
it was said to have been sold to William Page to
hold during the life of Sir John Denham, but this
seems incompatible with the sale to John Fielder in
the same year.
Three pieces of land in Horsenden, not granted to
the Count of Mortain, are mentioned in Domesday
Book.66 The Bishop of Bayeux held I £ hides of land
there, of which the hide was held by a sub-tenant
named Roger and the half hide by Robert.67 Before
the Conquest this land was all held by a man of Earl
Leofwine, Godwin by name.63
A small tenant in chief named Harding also he'd
l$ hides here ; he had succeeded Ulvured in the
land.69 This land must have been afterwards united
to the main manor of Horsenden, since Gerard de
Braybrook claimed that the whole of the township70
belonged to his fee in 1285.
» Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 1 1 Hen. VI.
89 Hist. MSS. Com. Ref. ix, App. i,
40^.
80 De Banco R. 686, m. 137.
81 Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 1 1 Hen. VI.
82 Hist. MSS. Com. Ref. ix, App. i, 41 a.
88 Cal. Rot. Pat. (Rec. Com.), ii, 471.
" Ibid.
85 Chan. Inq. p.m. 19 Edw. IV, no. 74.
•« Ibid.
87 Close, 20 Edw. IV, no. 16.
88 In the Close Roll Philip Plomer is
mentioned, but this is probably a mistake
for John, since the latter left no heirs of
the name of Plomer ; Cf. Chan. Inq.
p.m. 19 Edw. IV, no. 74.
89 Chan. Inq. p.m. 19 Edw. IV, no. 74.
« Close, 20 Edw. IV, no. 16.
41 Recov. R. Mich. 20 Hen. VIII.
« Ibid.
48 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), no. 98.
44 Ibid.
46 Feet of F. Bucks. East. 2 Eliz.
46 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccxcvii,
no. 162.
4~ Ibid, cccxxxvi, no. 40.
48 Ibid.
49 Foster, Alumni Oxon. (Early Ser.).
60 Visit, of Devon, 1564, 1622.
61 Genealogist, xiii, 273.
•' Ibid.
58 Ibid. ; Feet of F. Bucks. Trio. 1 8
Chas. I.
" Aubrey, Brief Lives (cd. Clark), i, 21 8.
15 Ibid.
M Cal. of Com. for Compounding, 1793.
254
W Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 14 Chas. II.
" Ibid.
59 Mich. 14 Chas. II; Trin. 35 Chas. II;
Hil. 5 Will, and Mary; Mich. II Will.
Ill ; Trin. 53 Geo. III.
60 From information given by Mr. W.
Grubbe, of Southwold, Suffolk.
61 From information given by Mrs.
Leonard Jaques, of Easby House, Rich-
mond, Yorkshire.
M Ibid.
68 Close, 1654, pt. 9, m. 5.
«4 Ibid.
« Ibid.
66 y.C.H. Suets, i, 235.
67 Ibid. 68 Ibid.
69 Ibid. 276*.
7» Plac. de Quo War. (Rec. Com.), 98.
RISBOROUGH HUNDRED
Horsenden Manor was held by military service, as
one knight's fee of the honour of Mortain.'1 It is
also described, however, as two-thirds of a fee or half
a fee,'1 but this was only in feudal assessments, when
the fees of the honour were privileged to pay less
than the full amount due.
When the manor passed from John de Horsenden
to Robert de Braybrook, the latter was to pay John
21. a year for all service, except forinsec service."
This rent does not seem to have been continued, and
the elder branch of the Braybrooks held in chief of
the king.'1 The younger branch also held by mili-
tary service.'4 The Cottons, however, held of the
king in chief as of his honour of Wallingford by fealty
and suit of court at the honour.7* In the 14.1(1 cen-
tury the free tenants of the lord of the manor of
Horsenden had pannage rights for their pigs in a wood
belonging to the manor of Princes Risborough." In
1 5 74 John Cotton, who then held Horsenden, took
estovers in the wood of Hellworke in Princes Ris-
borough ; " he also paid 1 Ib. of pepper as rent to the
lord of Princes Risborough Manor," but whether this
was for his manor or for the right to take the estovers
is not certain.
Gerard de Braybrook, in 1333, obtained a grant of
free warren * to himself and his heirs in their de-
mesne lands of Horsenden." In 1285 or iz86
Gerard de Braybrook claimed the view of frank-
pledge in Horsenden " as part of his inheritance. It
had, however, then been demised for a term of years,
together with the manor, to Henry de Shenholt.81
Gerard answered, however, to the Quo Warrant! in-
quiries himself and also claimed the right to have
tumbrels. He paid nothing to the king for these
rights. At the time of the Domesday Survey one
mill belonged to the Count of Mortain's manor in
Horsenden, but it was of no value in lo86.M It is
not mentioned again for many centuries, but when
the Cottons were lords of the manor there was a
water-mill appurtenant to it ; M in 1813 two water-
mills are mentioned in connexion with the manors of
Horsenden and Princes Risborough, one of which
was probably in Horsenden.8*
The church of ST. M1CH4EL hav-
CHURCH ing fallen into disrepair in 1765 the old
nave was pulled down, with the western
tower, leaving only the chancel standing. The pre-
sent church consists of the mutilated remains of the
HORSENDEN
chancel 45 ft. by 20 ft., with a western tower built
from the old material of the nave. It is lighted by
five windows, all of the same design and of 15th-
century date, though somewhat restored. They are
of three cinquefoiled lights with smaller trefoiled
lights over and two-centred heads. At the west end
of the south wall is the blocked opening of a squint,
at one time opening into the south aisle of the old
church. A description of this church is preserved in
a letter addressed by Dr. Browne Willis to Mr. John
Grubbe," as having consisted, in 1 728, of a chancel, a
nave with a blocked south arcade, and an embattled
tower ; it extended to about as far west as the present
stables of Horsenden House.
The tower is of two stages with an embattled
parapet. The belfry openings are square-headed, and
there is a west window of two trefoiled lights, with a
plain chamfered west doorway beneath. The font is
modern, octagonal, and of 15th-century detail.
The roof is modern, and also all the fittings, with
the exception of the upper part of a 15th-century
screen, which is planted against the west wall. It is
divided into rather narrow trefoiled openings by stout
chamfered mullions, and the spandrels are filled with
alternating rosettes and leopards' faces.
On the walls are a number of memoria's of the
Grubbe family, the earliest to Bathewell Grubbe,
1666, the wife of John Grubbe, who died in 1700,
and to whom there is another tablet.
There is one bell in the tower dated 1582.
The church plate consists of a cup of 1 66 1 and
a small 18th-century standing paten, of which the
hall-marks are illegible.
There is only one old book of the registers, which
contains baptisms from 1663 to 1809, burials from
1637, and marriages from 1707 to 1754, the latter
entries being continued in a printed book from 1754
to 1841.
The advowson of the church has
JDfOfrSON been held by the lords of the manor
since 1210, when it passed from
John de Horsenden to Robert de Braybrook.88 In
1660, however, the Bishop of Salisbury collated to
the rectory, presumably during the forfeiture of Sir
John Denham's lands."
The living is a rectory, and the present patron is
Mrs. Leonard Jaqucs, the lady of the manor.
There are no endowed charities in this parish.
n Tea* di Kevill (Rec. Com.), 254.
" Ftud. Aidt, i, 85.
"' Feet of F. Buclu, 12 John ; Pipe R.
12 John, m. id.
1* Feud. Aidt, i, 85.
75 Ibid. ; Chan. Inq. p.m. 33 Edw. Ill
(lit not.), no. 31.
'* Chan. lacj. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccxcvii, no.
162.
fl Ibid. 28 Edw. I, no. 44.
'* Exch. Dep. by Com. Eait. 16 Eliz.
no. i.
•' Chan. Inq. p.m. (Scr. 2), cccixxvi,
no. 40.
"> Chart R. 7 Edw. Ill, m. 7, no.
11 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccxcvii, no.
162.
"* Plac. dt Qua War. (Rec. Com.), 98.
» Ibid.
•* y.C.H. Buck,, i, 243*.
" Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccxcvii, no.
162 ; cccixxvi, no. 40.
* Recov. R. Trin. 5.3 Ceo. III.
*• Ree. of Bucki. iv, 75.
88 Feet of F. Bucki. 12 John.
" P.R.O. Init. Bki. 1660.
255
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
MONKS RISBOROUGH
Hriseberga (1006) ; Riseberge (xi cent.) ; Parva
Risborwe (xiv cent.) ; Monks Rysborough (xvi cent.).
The parish of Monks Risborough lies on the
north-western slope of the Chiltern Hills, and is
remarkably long and narrow in shape. Near Green
Hailey Firs the land rises to a height of 813 ft.
above the ordnance datum, but in the north-west of
the parish it is under three hundred feet. On the
hills the subsoil is chalk, but in the lower parts it is
Upper Greensand and Gault ; * the surface varies, con-
sisting of hard chalk, clay, and loam. The parish is
well wooded, and contains 5zof acres of wood.*
The people are mainly occupied in arable farming,
but there are extensive watercress beds near the
village of Monks Risborough. There are I,lz8f
acres of arable land and 830^ of permanent pasture.3
The small village and church stand on the west
side of the main road, which runs along the foot of
the slope of the Chiltern Hills, the church standing
back from the road, with the modern vicarage to the
south-east. In the vicarage garden, just east of the
church, is a pool fed by a spring from the chalk, from
which a stream runs northward past a moated site,
whose banks and ditches are now half obliterated.
To the north is a farm-house, and in the field between
it and the church stands a square pigeon-house, the
walls of which are probably mediaeval. It has a north
doorway of curious pseudo-Gothic detail.
A small stream runs from Askett hamlet to Monks
Risborough Mill and Alscott. Both the Great
Western and the Great Central Railways run through
the parish, but the nearest station is at Princes
Risborough.
The main road from Aylesbury to High Wycombe
passes through the village of Monks Risborough and
follows the course of the Upper Icknield Way.
Grim's Dyke can be traced here, running in a south-
westerly direction across the southern end of the
parish.
On the hills to the east of Monks Risborough is
cut the probably prehistoric landmark, known as the
Whiteleaf Cross, now well cared for by the owner of
the Hampden estates.4 Two tumuli exist in its
neighbourhood. There are four hamlets in the
parish : Owlswick, Meadle, Askett, and Cadsdean.
At Askett there is a Baptist chapel built in 1839,
with a small burial-ground attached. Master John
Schorne is said to have been vicar here before he
went to Long Marston, c. 1290. In 1701 Hum-
phrey Hody was presented to the vicarage of Monks
Risborough. He was appointed Regius Professor of
Greek at Oxford in 1697-8, and by his will left
various exhibitions to Wadham College.5
The manor of Monks Risborough was
MANORS granted to the monastery of Christchurch,
Canterbury, at an early date. In 995
Ethelred II confirmed a grant of the manor made by
Archbishop Sigeric to Bishop ^Escwige of Dorchester
for 90 ' librae ' of pure silver and 200 ' mancusae.' 6
In the next year, however, ^Escwige restored the
manor,7 which apparently was only granted as
security for the loan of money.8 It was confirmed to
Christchurch by King Ethelred in 1006,' and by
Edward the Confe;sor.w During the reign of the
latter it was held by Asgar the Staller," with the
condition that he could not alienate it from the
Church.
In the Domesday Survey " it is said to be held by
the 'Archbishop himself ; this was probably because
the lands of the prior had not been separated from
those of the archbishop, since by the I3th century
the manor was held by the Prior of Canterbury of
the king in chief.13
The monastery held the manor without interrup-
tion until it was seized by the
king " at the Dissolution. It
was not restored by him to
the Dean and Chapter of the
Cathedral Church, but was
granted in 1541 to Sir Francis
Bryan and Thomas Lawe.15
In the same year, however,
these grantees obtained licence
to alienate the manor to Ed-
ward Restwold and his wife
Agnes."
Agnes held the manor after
the death of her husband in
1548," but having apparen ly
married as her second husband Sir Thomas Water-
ton,18 it was sold by them to Thomas Fletewood,"
whose widow Brigit held the manor on the death
of her husband,*0 and was succeeded by her son
George." George Fleetwood sold it in 15 69" to
Richard Tredway of Beaconsfield and his son Walter,
and Richard Tredway again sold it to Elizabeth
Clarke, daughter of George Clarke of Monks Ris-
borough.13 She married Henry Ewer,** and they
held the manor till 1617, when it was sold to Sir
Jerome Horsey.*5 Before his death he had settled
it on Sir John Bonner, Sir John Curzon, and John
Hampden in trust for his sons,*6 reserving only
certain tenements to himself.*7 Very shortly after his
death, John Hampden and William and John Horsey
sold the manor to John Barber alias Grigge of
Wendover.88 It again changed hands in 1633, when
CHRISTCHURCH, CAN-
TERBURY. Azure a cross
argent -with the letters £
sable thereon.
1 V.C.H. Bucks, i, Geological Map.
1 Inf. from Bd. of Agric. (1905).
» Ibid.
* y.c.n. Bucks. ;, 189-90.
* Diet. Nat. Biog. xxvii, 77.
* Kemble, Cud. Dipl. dclxxxix.
7 Ibid. dcxc.
8 Dugdale, Mon. i, 95.
9 Kemble, Cad. Dipt, dccxv, dcccxcvi.
" Ibid.
" V.C.H. Bucks, i, 2333.
12 Ibid.
18 Tata de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 245 ;
cf. for the division of the estates between
the archbishop and the monks, P.C.H.
Kent, ii, ' Religious Houses'; Feud. Aids,
i, 97, 113, 123 5 Plac. de Quo War.
(Rec. Com.), 86.
" Valor Eccl. (Rec. Com.), i, 18.
15 Pat. 33 Hen. VIII, pt. 4 ; L. and P.
Hen. fill, xvi, 947 (18).
16 Ibid. 947 (22).
*' Chan Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), Ixxxvi,
No. 5.
18 Feet of F. Bucks. HiL 6 Edw. VI ;
East. 7 Edw. VI.
256
" Ibid. Hil. 2 Eliz.; East. 2 Eliz.
20 Monks Risborough Ct. R. in the
possession of Mr. G. L. Gomme,
21 Ibid.
22 Close, 44 Eliz. pt. 25.
23 Ibid. 2 Jas. I, pt. 21.
* Monks Risborough Ct R. j Feet of
F. Bucks. Trin. 4 Jas. I.
25 Ibid. Mich. 14 Jas. I.
26 Ibid. Trin. 21 Jas. I.
2" Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), D. ii,
no. 40.
28 Close, i Chas. I, pt. 7, no. 8.
RISBOROUGH HUNDRED
John Barber and his wife Anne told it to Edmund
Wat.1* The Wests seem to have held it for a longer
period than any of their predecessors since the first
grant by Henry VIII, for in 1694-5 a Roger West
sold it to John Poynter," in whose family it still
remained in 1719." At the present time the Earl
of Buckinghamshire is the lord of the manor.
The hamlet of OWLStHCK was apparently in-
cluded in Monks Risborough in the early grants to
Christchurch. After the Norman Conquest it was
held by a military sub-tenant. Three such tenants
are mentioned in 1210-12;" Henry de Lawike,
Thomas de Berewike, and Humphrey de Rede held
one fee in Risborough and Ncwington. The first-
named may be identified as a member of the family
who held Owlswick of the archbishop some years
later. Henry de Owlswick held half a knight's fee
there in 1284-6," and he was the ancestor of the
Baldwins who held the manor of Owlswick in the
next century. Baldwin son of Baldwin quitclaimed
all his right in certain land " which had originally
been granted by his ancestor Henry of Owlswick to
the abbey of Missenden," and John Baldwin made an
agreement with the abbey as to land in the hamlet."
Henry Baldwin in 1332-3 held lands and tene-
ment* in Monb Risborough.17 He also held the
manor of Owlswick with his wife Alice, and after
his death was succeeded by his son John Baldwin."
William son and heir of this John granted two-
thirds of the manor to John Grise and Nicholas
Bagenhale, excepting a tenement held by a life-
tenant." In 1 390 he granted the remaining third
of the manor, which his mother had held in dower, to
the same grantees." Nicholas Bagenhale41 enfeoffed
Edmund Hampden, Thoma* Swynerton, Bernard
Saunterdon, John Aspley, and Thomas Durham, of
the manor, probably in trust for the Hampdens, and
they held it in 1401." Two years later Henry son
of John Baldwin, the nephew of William Baldwin,
made an unsuccessful claim to the manor as the son
of the brother and heir of William.41 Nicholas
Bagenhale was called to give warranty and the feoffees
remained in possession. William Hampden made a
settlement of the manor in 1500" and Jerome
Hampden ** died seised of tenements in Owlswick in
1541. His son Richard ** and grandson Alexander47
also held the manor. The heirs of Alexander were
his three nieces Anne, Margaret, and Mary, daughters
of his brother Edmund.41 He provided for the shares
in this manor of Margaret and Mary, respectively the
wives of Thomas Wenman and Alexander Denton,
by a settlement made in 1639" and left their two-
thirds to his brother Christopher for life.10 The re-
MONKS
RISBOROUGH
maining third and the reversion of the bequest to
Christopher he left to his eldest niece Anne, the wife
of Sir John Trevor." The Trevors finally obtained
possession of the whole manor," but in 1657 they
sold it to William Claydon." His daughter Bashe-
well married John Grubbe of Horsenden, and the
manor of Owlswick," under the will of William
Claydon, passed to her three daughters, Elizabeth,
Lettice, and Hester." These heiresses, however, sold
it in 1716 to Edward Stone,5* who had married their
half sister Elizabeth Grubbe.*7 His grandson
Edward Stone, rector of Horsenden,* held the manor
in 1769," and it descended to his only daughter and
heiress Sarah, the wife of Charles Shard.40
In 1847 it was in the hands of Mrs. Shard of
Grimsdyke Lodge, Lacey Green. About 1861,
Mr. Grey bought the manor from Mrs. Shard, but in
that year he re-sold it to Mr. Humphreys, whose son,
Mr. George Humphreys of Brogton Park, Aspley
Guise, Bedfordshire, is the present lord of the manor
of Owlswick. A small quit-rent is paid to the lord
of the manor of Monb Risborough, and the copyhold
lands in the manor of Owlswick are also subject to
fines payable to him.
The Prior of Christchurch held the manor of
Monks Risborough in frankalmoign of the king in
chief." He held a view of frankpledge for his
tenants ** and claimed to have waifs and strays, the
chattels of felons and outlaws, and to receive the fines
of his men when they were fined in the king's courts.**
He also had gallows, tumbrel, and a pillory in the
manor.*4
When called upon by Edward I to show his war-
ranty for these rights he quoted a charter of William
the Conqueror confirming the comprehensive rights
and regalia granted to the Archbishop of Canterbury
by Edward the Confessor." The prior held the
assize of ale within the manor,** and he obtained in
13163 grant of free warren in his demesne lands in
Risborough,'7 which was confirmed by Edward III.**
No mills are mentioned at Monks Risborough in the
Domesday Survey. In the I4th and I5th centuries,
however, the millward was continually presented in
the manor court for taking excessive tolls from the
manorial tenants." At the dissolution of the monas-
tery there were two mills at Risborough, which were
occupied by leasehold tenants.70 These were the
same two mills presumably which were described in
the next century. Sir Jerome Horsey kept these in
his own hands when he settled the manor on his
sons, and at his death he died seised of a windmill on
Brokenhill, and a water-mill, both of which had been
formerly parcel of the manor of Monks Risborough.71
• Feet of F. Buck>. East. 9 Chu. I.
"> Ibid. Div. Cot. Hit. 7 Will. III.
" Ibid. Buclc«. Eait. 6 Geo. I.
« R«t Bk. tfExck. (Roll! Ser.), 471.
» FtuJ. Aid,, i, 85.
" Hirl. MS. 3688.
» Ibid. * Ibid.
•7 Feet of F. Bucki. Hil. 6 Edw. III.
" De Banco R. Trin. 4 Hen. IV, m.
119.
•" Feet of F. Bucki. Mich. 14 Ric. II.
«• Ibid.
41 Or Dagenhale.
«• De Banco R. 570, m. 119.
•» Ibid.
44 De Banco R. Bucks. Chart. Enr.
Trin. 15 Hen. VII, m. I d.
4* Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), Uiii, no.
I ; Eich. Inq. p.m. bdle. 35, no. 6.
*• Feet of F. Div. Co«. Trin. 10 Eliz.
« Ibid. Buck.. Hil. 29 Eliz.
• Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccclxrvi,
no. 96. *» Ibid.
» Ibid. ( P.CC. 37 Meade.
" Ibid.
** Feet of F. Bucks. Bait. 1 9 Jai. I j
ibid. Mich. 20 Jat. I ; ibid. Mich. 16
Clu.. I.
» Ibid. Hit 1657.
M Liptcomb, Hat. of Buckt. ii, 332.
" Feet of F. Buckt. Trin. 33 Chu. II;
ibid. Eait. 36 Chat. II j ibid. Mich. 7
Anne.
»• Ibid. Trin. i Geo. I.
257
" Liptcomb, Hiit. of Bucki, ii, 332.
" Ibid, ii, 444.
" Feet of F. Buckt. Trin. 9 Geo. III.
60 Liptcomb, Hiit. of Bucki. ii, 444.
0 FtuJ. Aidt, i, 97 ; Col. Chu, 1346-9,
p. 218.
•a Ct. Rollt,
• Plat. <tt Qua War. (Rec. Com.), 86.
** Ibid. •» Ibid.
*> Ct. RoUt.
17 Chart. R. 10 Edw. II, m. 24, no.
60.
•» Ibid. 38 Ed*. Ill, m. 8, no. 156.
•» Ct. Roll i.
'° Valor Ecel. (Rec. Com.), iv, 249.
71 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), D. ii, no.
40.
33
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
The church of ST. DUNSTAN con-
CHURCH sists of a chancel 36 ft. 6 in. by 16 ft.
6 in. with a modern organ chamber on
the north ; a nave 47 ft. 7 in. by 2 1 ft. 8 in. ; a north
transept 1 6 ft. 8 in. by 1 3 ft. 3 in. ; north and south
aisles respectively 9 ft. 10 in. and 10 ft. 2 in. wide ; a
south porch and a western tower 10 ft. by 10 ft. 8 in.,
all measurements being internal. Owing to exten-
sive rebuilding in the late 1 4th and in the isth cen-
turies the early history of the church is somewhat
obscure, but the tower is of fairly early 14th-century
date, and at the time of its building the church con-
sisted of a nave of the same plan as the present one,
roofed with a high-pitched roof, the traces of which
are clearly visible on the east wall of the tower, and
presumably a chancel within the lines of the present
chancel. There is nothing to show whether the
nave had aisles at this time, but the north transept
evidently existed before the present north arcade was
built, and is possibly of 13th-century date. Towards
the end of the 1 4th century a period of rebuilding
SCALE Of FEET
PLAN OF ST. DUNSTAN'S CHURCH, MONKS RISBOROUGH
and addition was entered on which lasted well into
the 1 5th century. The first work taken in hand was
the north aisle with its arcade, the eastern bay of
which is wider than the other three, in order to suit
the plan of the north transept. At the beginning of
the 1 5th century the south aisle was built, and a little
later on the chancel was rebuilt and the chancel arch
inserted. At the same time, or a little later, the south
porch was built, while the last work undertaken was
the clearstory and present nave roof. In modern
times the north organ chamber was added and a
certain amount of restoration carried out, including
the re-roofing of the chancel.
The east window of the chancel is quite modern
and of three trefoiled lights with tracery of early I4th-
century detail. In the north and south walls of the
chancel are two 15th-century windows of three
cinquefoiled lights with tracery over, with four-centred
arches. Between the pair on the north is the modern
opening to the organ chamber, and between the south
windows is a small modern priest's door. The sill of
the south-east window is carried down to serve as a
seat. The wide chancel arch is of two hollow-cham-
fered orders which are continuous, being stopped on
a large broach stop about 4 ft. above the floor.
The north arcade of the nave is of four bays. The
arches are of two chamfered orders, the inner of
which is stopped with a cone-shaped stop, the outer
with a broach stop. The columns are octagonal with
moulded capitals and bases. There is no west re-
spond, but in its place a half-capital upon a corbel.
At the east end is the upper door to the rood-loft,
which was originally entered from the transept. The
south arcade, of the same number of bays as the north,
has arches identical with those on the north, but the
detail of the capitals and bases is somewhat later in
character. The east bay, as in the north arcade, is
wider than the rest ; perhaps in this case in order to
correspond to the north arcade. In both cases it
appears that the walls above the arcades were rebuilt.
The clearstory has four 15th-century windows a side,
each of three cinquefoiled lights under square heads,
with deep hollow-
moulded external
reveals.
The north tran-
sept has a very
good 1 5 th - cen-
tury east window
of three cinque-
foiled lights with
tracery under a
four-centred head.
In the north wall
is a similar win-
dow. To the
south of the east
window is an im-
age bracket of
15th-century date
with a carved head
corbel, and on the
north a mutilated
niche, also of 15th-
century date, wilh
shafted jambs, a
foliated projecting
bracket, and the
remains of a crocketed canopy. The arch to the
north aisle is of the same detail as the north arcade,
and rests on the south upon the first pier of the latter
and on the north on a corbelled half-capital.
The north aisle has two windows to the north, the
first of three cinquefoiled lights, like the windows of
the transept but of later detail and date, and with a
straight-sided four-centred head. Following on this
is the north door of the same date as the aisle, with
an external label and continuously moulded jambs.
West of the door is a 15th-century window of three
cinquefoiled lights under a square head. The west
window of the same date, or slightly later, is small,
placed high in the wall and of two trefoiled lights
under a square head.
The south aisle has a modern east window of three
cinquefoiled lights with uncusped spandrels, of early
1 4th-century detail. In the south wall are two two-
light windows. The first of these is of early 14th-
century detail, and having been apparently reset, is
probably one of the old nave windows moved out
258
MONKS RISBOROUGH CHURCH : INTERIOR LOOKING EAST
RISBOROUGH HUNDRED
when the aisle was built. The internal jambs are
doubly shafted and have circular capitals and bases,
while the rear arch is elaborately moulded. There
are both internal and external labels, and the latter is
finished with mask drips just above a string-course in
which are worked two grotesque heads forming
secondary drips. The second window, also pre-
sumably re-used, is of later 14th-century date and
much restored ; it is of two trefoiled lights with two
trefoils and a quatrefoil over. The south door,
between these windows, is of early I 5th-century date,
continuously moulded in two double-ogee orders with
a hollow between.
The south porch has in its north-east angle a
mutilated holy-water stone, with a rounded bowl
upon a short square stem. There are small cinquefoiled
lights in the east and west walls, and the outer arch-
way is of two hollow-chamfered orders with sunk
spandrels and an image niche over.
The tower is of three stage;, with a plain parapet
and a large square south-east staircase turret. The
tower arch is of three continuous chamfered orders,
with an internal label which is continued as a string
to the north and south nave walls. The external
string between the first and second stages is carried
round the east wall of the turret, which now forms
part of the west wall of the south aisle, showing that
the turret stood free at this height in the first in-
stance. The belfry openings are of two cinquefoiled
lights with sharp two-centred heads. Below the
parapet is a corbel table, which is carried round the
stair turret which rises some feet above the tower.
The west door, of 14th-century date, has a two-centred
head of two richly-moulded orders, the inner of which
is continuous, while the mouldings of the outer die out
at the springing. The west window has modern
tracery of the same detail as the south-west window of
the south aisle.
The font is of the local I 2th-century type, with a
circular scalloped bowl, moulded stem, and square base,
ornamented with conventional foliage.
The chancel has a modern high-pitched tiled roof,
while those of the aisles, transept, and nave are of low
pitch and leaded. The last is of 1 5th-century date
with moulded principals, purlins, ridges, and wall-
brackets with cusped spandrel tracery, resting in some
cases upon grotesque stone corbels. The transept
roof is similar but perhaps earlier. The porch roof is
also of early 15th-century date, but is of steep pitch,
and a good deal of I ;th-century work is incorporated
in the aisle roofs. There is a much-restored rood-
screen in position, and on the jambs of the chancel
arch are faint traces of the coved soffit of the rood-
loft. The screen itself is of 15th-century date with
five wide arched bays, from the heads of which the
wooden vaulting has been removed, the spandrels
being filled in with modern tracery. The lower
panels are solid, and painted with figures of bearded
saints Wearing ermine-trimmed hats and tippets ; the
drawing and colour can only be called barbarous, and
they appear to be 1 8th-century repaintings of earlier
work. It is quite impossible to identify any of the
figures. There is a considerable quantity of 1 5th-
MONKS
RISBOROUGH
century work incorporated in the seating of the church,
four bench-ends in particular having well-designed
finials carved with figures standing or kneeling upon
two faces, back to back, or in one case upon two
pelicans. The oldest monument is the brass figure
of Robert Blundele, priest, 1431, in mass vestments,
and there is another brass of a civilian and his wife,
e. 1460, with two sons and five daughters. The
children, however, do not belong to the same monu-
ment as the two larger figures. In the eastern
window of the south aisle are some fragments of 1 4th
and 15th-century glass, the most perfect piece being
a small figure of our Lady and Child. There is also
some 15th-century glass in its original position in the
upper lights of one of the north windows of the
chancel.
The tower contains six bells, the treble cast by
Warner & Sons in 1885, the second and fourth dated
1637, the third, fifth, and tenor dated 1636. They
are all by Ellis Knight of Reading.
The church plate consists of a modern jewelled
chalice of mediaeval design, hall-marked for 1877 ; a
chalice inscribed as the gift of William Quarles in
1726, hall-marked for 171 o.and a salver, standing paten
and flagon similarly inscribed, the first hall-marked
for 1697, the second with no date-letter, and the
third with the date-letter for 1725.
The first book of the registers contains all entries
from 1587 to 1802, except in the case of marriages,
which cease at 1754. There is also a recent and
beautifully-made copy of this book. Baptisms and
burials are continued in another book from 1803 to
1812, and marriages, after a gap, in a third from
1778 to 1812.
The church of Monks Risborough
4DrOWSON was one of the two benefices belong-
ing to the deanery of Risborough,
within the exempt jurisdiction of the Archbishop of
Canterbury." The deanery was abolished in 1841
at the renewal of the rural deaneries, and the church
of Monks Risborough was assigned to Wendover
(first division).7* In 1865, however, it was again
transferred, and now belongs to the rural deanery of
Aylesbury." The church does not seem to have been
assigned with the manor to the monastery of Christ-
church, Canterbury, when the division of estates
between the archbishop and the monks took place.'4
No vicarage was ordained, and the rectory was not
amongst the possessions of the monastery at its disso-
lution." The archbishop collated to the living, since
during the vacancy caused by Archbishop Morton'*
death, the Crown instituted a new rector in 1500."
His successors78 collated to it until 1837, when with
the rest of Buckinghamshire, the ecclesiastical parish
of Monks Risborough was transferred to the diocese of
Oxford, and the Bishop of Oxford became patron of
the living.79
A chapel at Owlswick existed in the 1 4th century,
since in 1368 Robert Testyf was 'vicar of the church
of Olneswyk.' *° Tithes were set apart for the chapel
by John Wakeman, rector of Monks Risborough, in
the 1 5th century." In 1631," and again during
the Commonwealth," there were difficulties as to the
7* Dugdale, Mm. i, 89 ; falar Eccl.
(Rec. Com.), iv, 149.
n V.C.H. Buck,, i, 344, 345.
•* Ibid.
'• Cf. manor of Monki Ritborougb.
7« Valor Eccl. (Rcc. Com.), i, 18.
f Hut. MSS. Com. Rtf. ii, pt. i,
1090.
'' P.R.O. Init. Bkt. 1671 1789.
"• Lond. Gam. 30 May
259
80 Feet of F. Buck*, Bait, and Trin.
41 Edw. III.
81 Lipicomb, Hiii. of Bucks, ii, 419.
» Cal. S.P. Dom. 1631-3, p. 132.
" Exch. Com. Mich. 1656, no. 14.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
payment of the tithes to the vicar of Owlswick. The
rectory of Monks Risborough was sequestrated in 1 646,
and Nathaniel Anderson had thereupon been admitted
to the benefice, and had undertaken to find a curate
for the chapel to whom he was to allow about £30 a
year, a vicarage house, and certain tithes.84 Whether,
under ordinary circumstances, the curate of the chapel
was provided by the vicar of the parish church or by
the patron does not appear, since the chapel was
destroyed during the Civil War. There is now a
school chapel in the hamlet, built in 1866.
The charities of the Rev. Hum-
CH4RITIES phrey Hody, D.D., and the Rev.
William Quarles, D.D., for appren-
ticing, are endowed with 14 acres, purchased with
£100 left by will of Dr. Hody, 1706, and with £150
left by will of Dr. Quarles, 1727, and with 8 acres
allotted in 1830 under the Inclosure Award.
The land is let at £12 a year, which is applied, as
opportunity offers, in paying the premium on appren-
ticing one boy, selected from the Sunday school. In
1905 there was a balance in hand of £.66.
The said Dr. Quarles likewise devised his close called
Ives Heath to the rector in trust to pay 40^. a year
for instruction of poor boys in writing English and to
read their Catechism. The annuity is paid towards
the support of the Sunday school.
The Poor's Allotment consists of 273. 3 r. 36 p.,
allotted under the Inclosure Act, 2 Geo. IV, cap. 1 7
(Private), to the poor, in satisfaction of their right of
cutting and taking beech and other brushwood or
fuel from the waste called the Scrubbs, the rents and
profits to be laid out in the purchase of fuel to be dis-
tributed among the poor. The land is let at £50 a
year, which is applied by the parish council in the
distribution of coal.
An annual sum of £l, issuing out of land in Barnes
Field, is paid by Mrs. Jaques of Horsenden House, in
respect of a gift by a donor unknown, which is applied
by the parish council in the distribution of stockings.
PRINCES RISBOROUGH
Riseberge (xi cent.) ; Magna Risberge (xiii cent.) ;
Earls Rysebergh (xiv cent.) ; Princes Risburgh (xv
cent.).
The parish of Princes Risborough lies on the
western side of the county of Buckingham. It
contains 3,936^- acres, the greater part, viz. 2,620
acres, being arable land.1 There are 1,276^ acres
laid down in permanent grass, and 40 acres of wood.
The subsoil is chalk,2 but the surface soil is variable ;
on the hills it is generally light and chalky, and
in the lowlands either loam or strong clay. The
parish lies on the north-western slope of the Chiltern
Hills, rising to over 770 ft. above the Ordnance
datum.
The occupation of the people is almost entirely
agricultural. There is an iron-foundry at the hamlet
of Looseley Row, and sequin and bead-work is done
by women at Lacey Green. Water-cress beds exist
near the town of Princes Risborough, where there are
several springs. Princes Risborough is a small market
town, lying 8f miles south of Aylesbury on the high
road from Aylesbury to Wycombe. The road from
Wycombe to Thame branches off to the north-west
at the northern end of the town, and the Upper
Icknield Way also crosses the parish. The Wycombe
branch of the Great Western Railway runs to the west of
the town, the station being about three-quarters of a
mile away. In 1906 the Great Central Railway
opened a branch line to Aylesbury in conjunction
with the Great Western Railway, and this line passes
through Princes Risborough Station. The centre of the
town is at the junction of the three main streets,
where the square, red-brick market-house stands, with
open arcades and a covered walk on its lower story,
and a wooden cupola containing a bell rising from its
low slate roof. There are a good many 18th-century
red-brick fronts, and near the market-house a gabled
half-timber house with herringbone brick filling and
a fine central chimney stack. The church is at the
north-west corner of the town, standing in a large
churchyard, and to the east of it is the manor-house,
with remains of two sides of a deep moat in its grounds.
The manor-house is a handsome red-brick build-
ing with pilasters and mouldings in cut and
rubbed brick. It appears to date from the beginning
of the 1 8th century, but its staircase and the panel-
ling of the drawing-room are some fifty years
earlier, and may have been removed from an older
building on the same site. They fit so well into
their present position that it seems as if the house
must have been built with a view to receiving
them. The staircase is of oak with a heavy moulded
hand-rail and a balustrade of scrollwork, and large
square newels with ball finials and moulded pendants.
The drawing-room panelling is in two ranges with
tall arched upper panels, with small moulded key
blocks. Above is a frieze and an elaborate cornice of
many moulded members. The mantel is part of the
general design, and is enriched with a small Tuscan
order, a central oval panel, and flat baluster pilasters
below the mantel-shelf. At the window recesses are
pilasters reaching from floor to ceiling, the propor-
tions, workmanship, and design being extremely good,
and though comparatively plain, the room is a charm-
ing example of its date. The entrance hall is also
panelled, but not so elaborately, and is probably of
the same date as the house. The windows through-
out are sashed, and have heavy glazing bars.
Henry VIII made a grant to the inhabitants of
Princes Risborough in 1523 of a weekly market and
two yearly fairs.8 The market was held on Wednes-
days, and the fairs for three days at the Feast of the
Nativity of the Blessed Virgin, and on St. George's
Day. The market day in 1792 had been changed
to Saturday, and again in 1888 to Thursday. In
1792 there was only one fair held, on 6 May.* A
second fair has since been revived and is now held on
21 October.
The town obtained a charter from Queen Eliza-
beth in 1598, granting to the inhabitants immunity
84 Exch. Com. Mich. 1656, no. 14.
1 Inf. from Bd. of Agric. (1905).
• V.C.H. Bucks, i, Geological Map.
8 Pat. 15 Hen. VIII, pt. i, m. 23.
260
4 Rip. Royal Com. on Markets and Tolls,
vol. i.
RISBOROUGH HUNDRED
from serving on juries and paying tolls.' The ancient
earthwork called Grim's Dyke enters the parish on
the north-eastern border by Lilly-bottom Farm, and
reaches to Lacey Green. To the west of the church-
yard of Princes Risborough there is a site of about an
acre surrounded by a moat that popular tradition
asserts to be the site of the Black Prince's palace.
The civil parish of Princes Risborough contains the
hamlets of Longwick, Lacey Green, Looseley Row,
and Speen.
Before the Norman Conquest
MANORS PRINCES RISBOROUGH belonged to
King Harold.* There was attached to
the manor in his time a burgess of Oxford, who
remained there after the Norman Conquest, and a
salt-worker of Droitwich paid an unspecified number
of loads of salt to the lord of the manor in 1086.'
William the Conqueror kept the greater part of
Harold's lands, and so Princes Risborough became
part of the ancient demesne of the Crown. Half of
this part of Risborough seems, however, to have been
granted to Ansculf de Pinchengi very shortly after the
settlement of the Normans,' but was exchanged for part
of Ellesborough with Ralph Talgebosch or Taillebois,
by the king's command. Soon afterwards Risborough
again changed hands, and was held by the second Earl
Walter Giffard, who made various grants from these
PRINCES
RISBOROUGH
lands to the abbey of Notley.* From 1162 to 1180
Princes Risborough is said to belong to the honour of
Giffard,10 but on the death of the earl in 1164 it
reverted to the Crown," and does not appear to have
been included in the grant of his honour made by
Richard I to William Marshal and Gilbert de Clare,
the heirs of the Giffards. Before 1165 the manor
was granted to Richard de Humeto," the Constable
of Normandy, and from this time was reckoned among
the ' lands of the Normans.' The original grant was
probably made by Walter Giffard, but in 1 173-4, after
his death, Henry II gave a new charter " to the con-
stable. This grant was renewed on Richard's death
to his son and successor, William de Humeto.1* The
latter does not appear, however, to have held the
manor, which went to his younger brother Engelard,"
but by what charter or right he held it is doubtful.
Engelard's son, named William de Similly," succeeded
him, and held the manor till his death, circa \ 205,
when it escheated to the king." While in the royal
hands, various grants of land " in Risborough were
made, but only of a temporary nature, and by 1224 "
William de Similly's son, another William, was in
seisin of the manor. The heirs of Earl Giffard K now
made a determined attempt to recover Princes Ris-
borough, claiming that it was part of the honour to
which they had succeeded. Moreover, they denied
PRINCES RISBOROUGH : THE MARKET PLACE
• Thii charter ii now in poneuion of
Mr. G«orge Stritton of High Street,
Prince* Riiborough.
• r.C.H. Biuki. i, XJM.
7 Ibid.
* Ibid, i, 154*.
* Dugdale, MM. »i, 178.
10 Pi ft R. vi, 17.
11 Rid Bk. tf Exit. (Roll! Ser.), 311 ;
Pi ft K. ix, 1 5 j G.E.C. Comfltti Peiragr.
w Pipe R. rii.
« C*l. Doc. Franct, 186.
" Ibid. 187.
u Maitland, Braeton'i Nate Bk, ca»e
1734. " Ibid.
« Rot. Lit. Claui. (Rec. Com.), i, 86.
26l
" Ibid, ni, 46, 50, 75*, 576; Kid Bk.
of Exck. (Roll* Ser.), 537 j Pipe R. 14
John, m. 14.
u Curii Rcgii R. 8j, m. n | Tatt J*
Ncvill (Rec. Com.), zjii.
10 Curia Regii R. 87, m. 7 | Maitland,
Bracnn'i Nta Bk. cate 17541 Auiz* R.
54, m. gd.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
that William de Similly could claim from the grant
to the Constable of Normandy, as that grant had been
made to Richard de Humeto and his heirs, and Wil-
liam was not his heir. No result came of their suit,
since it was decided that the question must stand over
till the king was of age. A second suit " was subse-
quently brought by Gilbert, Earl of Gloucester, against
William de Similly, but the result is not recorded.
The latter,™ however, remained in peaceful seisin of
the manor " till his death before 1 242.** The land
then escheated to the king, the heir being a minor,
and the rights of wardship were granted to Drogo de
Trubleville.'5 The heir of William de Similly is
never mentioned again, and presumably died before
coming of age, for in 1243
Henry III granted the manor
of Princes Risborough to
Richard, Earl of Cornwall and
King of the Romans.*6 Richard
was succeeded by his son Ed-
mund, Earl of Cornwall,*7 who
held the manor till his death
in 1300,** when it again came
into the king's hands, Ed-
ward I being the next heir.
The king held it in demesne
in 1 302-3," but immediately
afterwards he granted it to
Queen Margaret for life, in exchange for certain castles
and lands with which he had dowered her.*1 Margaret,
the Countess of Cornwall, however, held a third as part
of her widow's dower during her life.31 The rever-
sion was granted in 1 309 to Piers Gaveston and his
wife Margaret,31 one of the heiresses of the Clares,
and also one of the descendants of the GifFards, but
this grant was surrendered in the same year.33 Queen
CORNWALL. Argent
a lion gules crovjned or in
a border sable bezanty.
ENGLAND.
three leopards or.
Gules
OLD FRANCE. Azurt
ptrwdercd with Jlturs-de-
lit or.
Margaret lived till 1 3 1 6,M and from the time of her
death till 1327 the manor of Princes Risborough was
held by the king.35 At the latter date Edward III
granted it to Queen Isabella in reward for her ser-
vices with regard to the treaty with France and the
suppression of the Despensers' Rebellion.36 In 1330
John de Eltham, Earl of Cornwall and brother of the
king, obtained a grant of the manor of Risborough,37
but after his death in 1337 "Queen Isabella again
held the manor. The reversion was granted to
Henry de Ferrers,39 who obtained possession after
the death of Isabella, and died seised in 1344.*°
His son was a minor, and the custody of the manor
was granted to the Black Prince,41 from whom it
took its present name of Princes
Risborough." The prince **
held the manor till his death,
when it passed to Richard his
son and heir." The latter,
while still prince, granted the
manor for life to Lewis de
Clifford." He confirmed the
grant on his accession to the
throne, and Lewis held it for
his life. Under Henry IV
the manor came into the hands
of the Crown, and was again
granted to the Prince of
Wales.40 Henry VI succeeded
to the manor,47 which formed
of his queen
THE BLACK PRINCI.
Old France auarterea
•with England, a label ar-
gent for difference.
part of the dower
Margaret of Anjou.48 Afterwa:ds,
ENGLAND. France
quartered tuith England.
ANJOU. Old France i
border gules.
however, it seems to have been held by his SOB
Edward, Prince of Wales.49 It remained in the
hands of the Crown apparently till Edward VI
granted the manor to Princess Elizabeth for life.4*
James I granted it to Anne of Denmark as part of her
dower," and on her death to Sir Henry Hobart to
the use of Prince Charles.51 In 1628 Charles I con-
veyed the manor to the City of London in part pay-
ment of the large debts of the king.53 The fee-farm
rent from the manor54 was granted in 1671 to Lord
Hawley in trust for the king's heirs and successors,55
until it was sold. This sale took place in the same
year to Sir Peter Lely,66 the painter. Under the
Commonwealth the manor of Pr.nces Risborough,
distinguished at this time as the King's Manor,57 came
into the hands of Ralph Adeane.58 He held it in
81 Assize R. 54, m. 9 d.
88 Cal. Close, 1231-4, p. 561.
88 Testa de Ne-uill (Rec. Com), 245, 262.
84 Chan. Inq. p.m. Hen. Ill, file 2,
no. 6.
25 Abbrev. Rot. Orig. (Rec. Com.), i, 5.
m Cal. of Chart. 1226-57, P- 276 i
Assize R. 56, m. 43 d.
*> Cal. Inq. p.m. Hen. Ill, no. 808 ;
Feud. Aids, i, 85.
88 Chan. Inq. p.m. 28 Edw. I, no. 44
(21).
89 Feud. Aids, i, 97.
89 Cal. Pat. 1301-7, p. 118.
81 Chart. R. Bucks. 3 Edw. II, m. IO,
no. 27.
88 Ibid.
88 Cal. Close, 1307-13, pp. 225, 226.
84 Feud. Aids, i, 112; Abbrev. Rot.
Orig. (Rec. Com.), 240.
85 Ibid.
M Cal. Pat. 1327-30, p. 68.
°7 Chart. R. 4 Edw. Ill, m. 7, no. 12 j
Cal. Pat. 1330-4, p. 52.
88 Ibid. 1334-8, p. 418.
89 Ibid. 1343-8, p. 92.
40 Chan. Inq. p.m. 17 Edw. Ill (l»t
nos.), no. 57.
41 Cal. Pat. 1343-5, p. IIJ.
48 Cal. Close, I 343-6, p. 32.
48 Feud. Aids, i, 122.
« Cal. Pat. 1377-81, p. 157.
262
« Ibid. 4S Ibid. 1422-9, p. 94.
47 Ibid. 1461-7, p. 146.
48 Duchy of Lane. Misc. Bks. 18, m.
50 d. (pt. 2).
« De Banco R. Mich. 6 Hen. VII, m.
307.
60 Pat. 4 Edw. VI, pt, 3, m. 25 ; ibid.
5 Edw. VI, pt. 3, m. 31.
51 Ibid. I Jas. I, pt. 20.
'a Ibid. 17 Jas. I, pt. I.
w Ibid. 4 Chas. I, pt. 35 i Cal. S.P.
Do™. 1628-9, P* 426.
64 Close, 24 Chas. II, pt. 9, no. 23.
« Ibid. 66 Ibid.
W Close, 1653, pt-39> no. 33.
M Ibid.
RISBOROUGH HUNDRED
1653" and 1655," and after the Restoration Thomas
Adeane, a minor, was lord of the manor as heir of
Ralph." In 1684, however, Edward Bigland and
George Pelham appear to have been in seisin." In
DENMARK. Or plun-
dered ivitk kearn jf'-/«
three leopardl azure vuith
goldn crwini.
CHAHLIS, Prince of
Walei. The royal armt
of the Stuarn, FIANCE
and ENGLAND quartered
viith SCOTLAND and IK-
LAND, with the difference
of a label argent.
170* and in 1729 Henry Penton held this manor a
In 1766 it was sold by the Penton family to John
Grubbe of Horsenden.*4 In the same year he, together
with his next brother Samuel, sold it to Edward, the
third brother." Edward's grandson John held the
manor in i 8 13,' 6 but in 1841 it was advertised for
PRINCES
RISBOROUGH
sale by auction.*7 It was, however, purchased privately
by the Duke of Buckingham and Chandos on the day
previous to the sale " The duke's lands were sold
very shortly after the purchase of this manor, which,
in 1862, was in the hands of Mr. James Cuddon "
At the present day Mr. Humphrey Brill, of Aston
Clinton, claims to be lord of the manor of Princes
Risbo rough.
This manor in Princes Risborough was held by
William de Similly by the service due from one
knight's fee,78 and the same service was performed by
the Earls of Cornwall." In later grants the service
is not defined. The lords of the manor under the
Commonwealth paid a fee-farm rent, which in 1671
was given as £82 4*. J\d.n It is interesting to note
that this rent had hardly varied from the yearly value
of the manor 300 years before. In 1303 it was
£82 9/. 3d-./1 and in 1337 £84," and 1381 £90."
Earl Walter Giffard and Countess Ermengarde
granted a wood called Lullested in Princes Risborough
to the abbey of Notley, on its foundation." This
grant was confirmed by Henry II and John and by
Edward III."
In 1291 the temporalities of the abbey in Princes
Risborough were lands and meadows worth 1 2/. <)J.
a year." The abbey probably obtained further grants
of land in the parish, since at the Dissolution it held
PRINCES RISBOROUGH : CHURCH STREET
*• Recor. R. Mil. 1653.
« Feet of F. Bucki. HiL 1655.
" Eicb. Dep. by Com. Mich. 26 Chat.
II, no. 46 ; Mich. 19 Chit. II, no. it.
•» Recor. R. HiL 36-7 Chat. II.
« Feet of P. Buck*. Trin. 1 3 Will. IIIj
Recov. R. Hil. 3 Geo. II.
" From information lupplied by Mr.
W. J. Grubbe, Southwold, Suffolk.
" Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. 6 Geo. III.
•• Ibid. Trin. 53 Geo. III.
1 Lipicomb, Hitt. of Bucki. ii, 333 ;
Timet, 13 Aug. 1841.
** From information lupplied bjr Mr.
W. J. Grubbe.
•* Sheaham, Hiit. and Topog. Bucki.
191.
7° TatJ Jt Nfvill (Rec. Com.), 152*.
263
H Cal. e,f hi), f.m. He*. Ill, no. 808 ;
Feud. Aidt, i, 97.
7* Clou, 24 Chat. II, pt 9, no. 23.
J» Cal. Pat. 1301-7, p. II 8.
74 Ibid. 1327-30, p. 68.
" Ibid. 1377-81, p. 157.
1* Cal. Rot. Chart. (Rec. Com.}, i, 46 ;
Dugdile, Man. vi, 278. Tl Ibid.
71 Pt ft Nick. Tax. (Rec. Com.), 32.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
the manor and rectory of Princes Risborough, valued
at £40 a year.™ Henry VIII granted this manor,
known as the ABBOT'S M4NOR, to the dean and
chapter of Oxford,60 but they forfeited it not long
afterwards. Edward VI on his accession to the
throne gave it to Robert King, Bishop of Oxford,"
but Elizabeth recovered the manor from the bishop in
1589."* In the same year she had already granted it
to Thomas Crompton, Robert Wrighte, and Gilley
Merick.™ Crompton sold it to John Jackman,84 who
held it at his death in 1622,^ when it passed to his
son. The latter sold it in 1 6 24 to Joan Chibnall
and Vincent Barry,86 who was the steward of the
King's Manor.87 During the Civil War this manor
presumably came into the hands of Ralph Adeane,
who certainly had the rectory.88 In a suit as to
the customs of the manor in l6y5,89 the King's
Manor and the Abbot's Manor are both mentioned ;
the former is said to belong to the ancient demense
of the Crown, and not the latter, but both seem to
be held by Thomas Adeane, and from this time con-
tinued to be held together.
In Elizabeth's grant to Thomas Crompton,90 a
mansion-house called ' Broke House ' is specially men-
tioned, and appears in the majority of the deeds relat-
ing to the manor. The latter indeed is sometimes
called Brooke, the description in 1813" being the
' manor of Risborough or Princes Risborough or
Brooke or Abbot's Risborough commonly called the
Abbots' hold.' By Walter GifFard's grant the wood
was held by the abbey in frankalmoign,9' and the
Bishop of Oxford held the manor in the reign of
Edward VI on the same tenure, but also paid rent
for h.a
CULPERTON is first mentioned in 1247."
Stephen son of Hugh of Culverton then held I hide
of land of Philip son of Oliver. He had formerly
paid the yearly rent of I mark, but it was changed by
agreement to the payment of a clove gilly-flower
yearly. In 1317 Hugh of Culverton made an ex-
change of land in Princes Risborough with John de
Foxle and his wife Constance. Hugh by this settle-
ment was to hold his land and tenements for life, with
remainder to John and Constance and the heirs of
John.95 The other piece of land which changed
hands was to be held by John and Constance and the
heirs of John.96 These arrangements suggest that
Constance was possibly the heiress of Hugh de Culver-
ton. John de Foxle died, in 1324-5, seised jointly
with his wife of land at Culverton.97 Constance
then held them alone and presumably was succeeded
by Thomas de Foxle.98
In the next century Richard de la Hay held the
manor of Culverton, which in 1443 was settled intact
on Matthew de la Hay and his wife Anne.99 It wa»
sold in 1516-17 by Thomas a Botre and his wife
Joan to Robert Bonner.100 It had apparently been
the inheritance of Joan.101 In 1633-4 tne manor of
Culverton alias Frogmore House passed from Charles
Alden and his wife Alice to Ralph Baldwin ; 108 five
years later the latter conveyed it to Francis Steevens.103
John de Foxle held his land in Culverton of the king
in chief, of the manor of Princes Risborough.104 He
did suit of court at Risborough every three weeks, and
paid a yearly rent of 3 3/. gJ.wi
In 1316-17 the king granted him and his heirs the
right of free warren in all his demesne lands in Princes
Risborough and Saunderton.106
The manor of Princes Risborough
THE PARK in 1086 was assessed at 30 hides, and
of these 20 were then contained
in the demesne of the king.107 This suggests that
even in the I ith century the nucleus of a park
already existed, and a few years later the wood of
Earl Walter GifFard is mentioned in the foundation
charter of Notley Abbey.108 The park is mentioned
in the inquisition taken at the death of Richard Earl
of Cornwall,109 and the Abbot of Notley had various,
rights in it,110 to maintain which he was continually
making complaints to the king.111 Edward II and
probably his predecessors used the park of Risborough
as a stud-farm. The buildings in the manor were
repaired in 1 3 1 8,1'2 so that the horses of the king's
stud could be properly kept there, and a special in-
closure was made in which the horses might be
exercised. Orders were given that the keeper of the
stud should have whatever was required for the
horses.1" The colts are particularly specified in some
of the orders, and in the appointment of William de
Framesworth as keeper of the stud it is specially men-
tioned that he was to have the custody of the colts as
well as of the horses already broken in.114 The deer
in the park are also mentioned in 1337,"* when
orders were given that thirty-two should be taken
from the parks of Risborough and Cippenham, and
sent to Westminster for the funeral expenses of John
Earl of Cornwall, the king's brother. The park was
however, always granted with the manor until
Henry VIII granted an inclosure, called Risborough
Park, to Sir Edward Don.1'6 The Dons had already
held the parkership of Risborough ; Edward IV had
granted it to Sir John Don, who retained his office
after the accession of Henry VII.117 In 1520 the
office of parker was granted to Sir Edward himself, and
to Sir John Daunce in survivorship.118 Sir Edward's
daughter and heiress Anne married George Cotton
of Whittington,119 Gloucestershire, and she held
the park for her life.120 The reversion, to fall in
7» Dugdale, Mon. vi, 278.
8« Pat. 34 Hen. VIII. pt. 6, m. 12.
81 Ibid. 1 Edw. VI, pt. 5, m. 31-6.
82 Feet of F. Div. Cos. Hil. 32 Eliz.
88 Pat. 32 Eliz. pt. 9, m. 9.
84 Feet of F. Bucks. East 36 Eliz.
85 Chan. Inq. (Ser. 2), ccclxxxvi, no.
95-
86 Feet of F. Bucks. Hil. 22 Jas. I.
87 Exch. Dep. by Com. Mich. 29 Chas.
II, no. 1 8.
88 Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 1658.
88 Exch. Dep. by Com. Mich. 26 Chas.
II, no. 46.
80 Pat. 32 Eliz. pt. 9, m. 9.
91 Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. 53 Geo. III.
n Dugdale, Mon. vi, 278.
"Pat. I Edw. VI.pt. 5, m. 31-6.
« Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 32 Hen. III.
84 Ibid. Trin. 10 Edw. II, no. 20.
86 Ibid. no. 24.
87 Chan. Inq. p.m. 18 Edw. II, no. 32.
98 Cal. Close, 1323-7, p. 388.
88 Feet of F. Bucks. East. 21 Hen. VI.
100 Close, 8 Hen. VIII, m. 43.
101 Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 9 Hen.
VIII.
l°» Ibid. Hil. 9 Chas. I.
108 Feet of F. Bucks. East. 14 Chas. I.
104 Chan. Inq. p.m. 18 Edw. II, no.
32-
«« Cat. Close, 1323-7, p. 388.
106 Chart. R. 10 Edw. II, m. 12, no.
26.
264
W V.C.H. Bucks. \, 2323.
108 Cal. Rot. Chart. (Rcc. Com.), i, 46.
109 Cat. of Inq. p.m. Hen. Ill, no. 808.
110 Chan. Inq. p.m. 32 Edw. I, no.
241.
111 Cal. Close, 1323-7, p. 232 ; ibid.
lla Cal. Close, 1318-23, p. 147.
113 Ibid. p. 60 ; ibid. 1330-7, p. 448.
u< Cal. Pat. 1343-5, p. 368.
115 Cal. Close, 1333-7, p. 640.
U6 L. and P. Hen. VIII, xv, 733 (12).
117 Rolls ofParl. (Rec. Com.), vi, 341*.
«8 L. and P. Hen. VIII, iii, 967 (8).
119 See Horsenden.
120 Com. Pleas Deeds Enr. East. 4 Eliz.
m. II.
RISBOROUGH HUNDRED
DORUEK. Azurt ten
killta or and * ckiif or
•with a demi lion sable.
after her death, was sold in 1562 by Edward
Daunce to Sir William Dormer.1" Robert Lord
Dormer, the son of Sir William, died seised of the
Risborough Park1" in 1617, his heir being his
grandson Robert, whose estates
were sequestered during the
Civil War.1" In 1 56 1 George
Gosnald, of Colston Basset,
Notts., obtained the estate of
Lord Dormer in Princes Ris-
borough on a lease, paying
£230 a year."* Lord Dormer
was said to have held it at a
yearly rental of £ I oo."* This
estate was not definitely called
the Park of Princes Ris-
borough, but it seems prob-
able that it may be identified
with it. No mention of the park is made after
the Restoration, and it seems to have been re-
covered by the lords of the manor. When Ralph
Adeane held the property in 1653 lw there were 800
acres of wood and 60 of furze and heath attached to
the manor, the total acreage of land of all kinds being
1,360 acres, and rents being paid further to the value
of £15 a year. The Abbot's manor was not included
in this.
In the Domesday Book there were two mills at
Princes Risborough, worth 14*. 9J. a year.'*7 They
may probably be identified with the two water-mills
mentioned in the reign of Henry III. Geoffrey
Neyrnut held one of these of the King of Almain,
then Richard Earl of Cornwall, the lord of the manor,
and the second of Richard de la Forde."* One
water-mill was held in the 1 7th century by William
Hampdcn.1" It was left under his will to his cousin
Richard Hampden."0 It was then called Longwick
M'll, a name which is still used for the water-mill in
the hamlet of Longwick at the present day. A water-
mill was also held by Robert Lord Dormer, early in
the 1 7th century,111 and a water-mill and a windmill
are mentioned in 1712, being then in the possession
of Charles Dormer.111
In the 1 4th century there was a water-mill at
Culvcrton.1** A mill was first mentioned in the
settlement made between Hugh of Culverton and
John de Foxle in I3I7,1*4 and the latter died seised
of a water-mill.13* In the conveyances of the manor
of Culverton in the I7th century the water-mill
passed with the manor.1"
The church of OUR LADY consists
CHURCH of a chancel 32 ft. 9 in. by 1 7 ft. 10 in.,
with a modern organ chamber on the
north ; a nave 60 ft. 9 in. by 26 ft. 3 in. ; north and
south aisles 1 1 ft. 3 in. and 8 ft. wide respectively ;
a south porch and a western tower. Up to the first
quarter of the 1 3th century the church consisted of
a chancel and an aisleless nave of the same width
as at present, but some I oft. shorter. About 1220
north and south aisles were added, and about 1300
the nave and aisles were lengthened by one bay, a
tower being probably begun at the same time. A
PRINCES
RISBOROUGH
little later, in the !4th century, the chancel was re-
built, and the clearstory was a 15th-century addition.
In modern times the church has been drastically re-
stored, few of the windows remaining untouched.
The clearstory and north aisle were rebuilt, and the
east responds of the nave arcades, which were of
some depth, pierced with small arches in continuation
of the arcades. In 1907 a new tower and a tall
stone spire were begun from the designs of Mr. Oldrid
Scott.
The east window of the chancel is modern and
of geometrical detail. In the north wall is a much-
restored early 14th-century window of two uncusped
lights, with an uncusped circle over and shafts to the
internal splay. West of this is the opening to the
modern organ chamber. At the south-west of the
chancel is a trefoiled piscina, circa 1330, with a shelf
and a double drain. The two windows in the south
wall, of 14th-century style, and the door between
them, are all much restored but in part ancient
Below the western window is a blocked low side win-
dow, with a square head and plain chamfered jambs
and with its iron bars still in position. The chancel
arch is modern and of late 13th-century style.
The nave is of seven bays, and the two arcades are
practically identical, the arches throughout being of
two chamfered orders. The first arch on either side
is modern, and also the first column, circular in plan
and with moulded capital and base. The second,
third, fourth, and fifth columns and arches, and the
sixth arch are of ^th-century date, the columns being
octagonal and the arches having plain chamfered
labels, with moulded capitals and plain bases. The
seventh pair of arches, circa 1300, have a filleted roll
label, and the sixth columns and the western responds
are of the same time and are of quatrefoil plan, with
moulded capitals and bases of the same form and
date, but varying from each other in the details of
moulding. The tower arch is modern and of early
14th-century design. The clearstory has five modern
sixfoil circles on either side, and is shown by Lips-
comb to have originally had two-light windows in
this position.1*7
The north aisle opens to the organ chamber by a
modern arch, and the north wall of the aisle has
been completely rebuilt ; but in the main with old
materials. The windows are four in number, the
first two of three trefoiled lights with tracery over,
the others of two lights, and all with segmental heads
and of 14th-century detail. Some old stones are set
in their jambs and splays, but the tracery in all cases
is quite modern. The blocked north door in the
middle of this aisle is of 14th-century date but very
much restored, with continuously moulded jambs and
two-centred head of two orders. There is no west
window to either aisle.
The south aisle has a much-restored east window
of 14th-century date, with two uncusped lights. The
shafted jambs, mullion, and splays are old, and have
circular moulded capitals and bases. In the south
wall, at the east end, are a much-defaced piscina and
sedile of 14th-century date, with the remains of
10 Pat. 4 Eliz.pt. 10, m. 5.
1X1 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. z), ccclviii, no.
'» Cal. of Com. fir Compounding, 1785.
»»« Ibid. "» Ibid.
>» Recov. R. H.I. 1653.
•* y.C.H. Bucki. i, 23".
*" Cfl. Inj.f.m.Htn.III, no. 903.
'* Exch. Dep. by Com. East, i Jai. I,
no. 8.
**• Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. i), ccczl, no.
188.
111 Ibid, ccclviii, no. 101.
"* Rccov. R. East. 1 1 Anne.
265
'*• Chan. Inq. p.m. iS Edw. II, -,2.
**• Feet of F. Buck*. Trin. 10 Edw. II,
no. 20.
"* Chan. Inq. p.m. 18 Edw. II, no. 32.
"• Feet of F. Bucki. HiL 9 Chat. I }
ibid. Bait. 14 Chat. I.
u' Lipscumb, Hilt, of Bucki. ii, 336.
34
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
elaborate projecting canopies with shafted jambs ; in
the piscina is a stone shelf. Immediately west of this
is a very remarkable three-light window, which looks
like 13th-century work reused and altered circa 1320.
The lights are uncusped, and have a square inner
reveal and stilted moulded rear arches resting on free-
standing shafts with octagonal moulded capitals ; there
are engaged shafts to the tracery orders also. Partly
under this window is a 14th-century tomb recess with
a sub-cusped cinquefoiled ogee head, and another like
it to the west ; both are now empty. Close to the
south door is a small plain much restored holy water
recess, and from this point to the sedile runs a string-
course on the level of the sill to the window last de-
scribed. The south door is of late 13th-century date,
with a deeply-moulded two-centred head and shafted
jambs with circular bases and capitals. West of the
south door is a window of three cinquefoiled lights,
repaired, but of 14th-century date, and there is a
contemporary moulded string-course forming its sill
and extending some distance on each side of it. Be-
low are two tomb recesses similar to those already
described, but having shafted jambs.
The south porch is modern and has a small lancet
on either side.
The new western tower is of three stages, with
a tall stone spire, and incorporates the old tower,
which has been refaced.
The font is modern, with a plain octagonal bowl.
There are no monuments of interest in the church,
and the roofs and seating are modern. There is,
however, a 17th-century oak pulpit.
There is only one bell, dated 1838, and a small
'ting-tang,' dated 1805.
The church plate consists of a communion cup of
1752, given by Thomas Penn, rector ; a plated paten ;
and a flagon of 1629, given by Miss Mary Chibnall.
The first book of the registers contains baptisms
and marriages from 1561 to 1695 and burials from
1561 to 1678. Burials are continued in a second
book from 1678 to 1727, and baptisms and marriages
in a third from 1695 to 1721. A fourth book
contains baptisms and marriages from 1721 to 1754;
a fifth and sixth burials from 1721 to 1786 and
from 178610 1812. Baptisms, after a gap, are con-
tinued from 1788 to 1812, and three books containing
marriages with banns run from 1754 to 1776, from
1776 to 1 803, and from 1803 to 1812.
The church of Princes Risborough
ADVOWSON was granted by Walter Giffard to
Notley Abbey Is8 at its foundation,
with the tithes of his demesne lands there. A vicar-
age, however, was not ordained. In 1258 the abbot
obtained leave from the pope that the churches and
chapels belonging to his abbey should be served by
the canons or other priests, who should be answerable
to the abbot and convent.139 This method of serving
the churches caused various complaints in the I4th
and I 5th centuries,140 but the privilege was confirmed
by Boniface IX in I4O2.141 The rectory belonged to
the abbey of Notley at the dissolution of the monas-
teries.14' It was afterwards granted by Henry VIII
to the Dean and Chapter of Oxford,143 and was held
with the Abbot's Manor till the I9th century. A
vicarage is mentioned in the grants of Henry VII i 144
and Edward VI,14S but this was probably a mistake.
The advowson of the church was granted with the
rectory to Thomas Crampton,146 and the church was
served by a perpetual curate appointed by the impro-
priator of the rectory. The patronage was transferred
to the Bishop of Oxford in i86o,147 and finally the
benefice was declared a rectory in i868.148
A chapel of St. John the Evangelist was built at
Lacey Green early in the igth century,149 the plan
being mainly carried through by the exertions of the
Rev. Richard Meade, rector of Horsenden and per-
petual curate of Princes Risborough. It was conse-
crated by the Bishop of Lincoln in 1825.
The hamlet, with Looseley Row and Speen, was,
however, formed into an ecclesiastical parish in 1 8 5 1 ; 1M
the living is a vicarage in the gift of the rector of
Princes Risborough.
The Abbot of Notley, at the time of the Dissolu-
tion, was bound to distribute certain charities to
various poor persons at the church of Princes Risbo-
rough, to the value of 2O/. a year, for the benefit of
the souls of the Earl Walter Giffard and the Countess
Ermengarde.141 An acre of land was also granted to
provide a light at Princes Risborough, presumably
within the church.151 A Baptist chapel was built in
1707 in Bell Street, and a second chapel was opened
at Looseley Row in 1862. There is a branch of the
Bell Street chapel at Longwick, where there is also a
Wesleyan chapel. The Wesleyan Methodists have a
chapel in Princes Risborough, built in 1869. At
Speen there is a Baptist chapel opened in 1813, and
the Primitive Methodists have a chapel at Lacey
Green.
For many years there was an ancient custom at
Princes Risborough by which the impropriator gave a
bull and a boar on Christmas Day for the use of his
parishioners. They were distributed ' in large pieces,
smoking hot from the copper at five o'clock in the
morning • for breakfast on Christmas Day.' 1M Four
bushels of wheat and four bushels of malt were also
made into bread and beer and given away. The
custom however was given up before l847.164
In 1615-16 William Smith by his
CHARITIES will left £40 for the use of the poor.
The legacy was laid out in land, in
respect of which 3 a. 2 r. 3 6 p. in Near Side Field
were allotted on the inclosure in 1820. The land
is let in allotments, producing about £j a year, which
is applied in the distribution of money, 2/. 6</. to
each recipient.
An annual payment of £32 a year is made by Lord
Rothschild out of the Manor Farm, Tring, in respect
of Joan Chibnall's Charity, by will, 1 646, for provid-
ing gowns, &c., for poor widows or ancient ladies of
Princes Risborough, and other parishes in this county
and Oxford. In 1905 thirteen women of this parish
were provided with gowns at a cost of £8 ; 21. were
given to fifty-one recipients and lot. paid to the
rector for a sermon.
188 Dugdale, Man. vi, 278 ; Cal. Rot.
Chart. (Rec. Com.}, i, 46.
189 Cal. of Papal Letters, v, 508.
14» V.C.H. Bucks, i, 377.
141 Cal. of Papal Letters, v, 509.
l« Valor Eccl. (Rec. Com.), iv, 233.
148 Pat. 34 Hen. VIII, pt. 6, m. 12.
»« Ibid.
145 Ibid. I Edw. VI, pt. 5, m. 31-6.
146 Ibid. 32 Eliz. pt. 9, m. 9.
*47 Land. Gaz. jo Mar. 1860.
I*8 Ibid. 25 Feb. 1868.
266
149 Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii, 441.
150 Land. Gdx. I Aug. 1851.
151 Valor Eccl. (Rec. Com.), iv, 233.
1M Chant. Cert. 5, Bucks, no. 71.
1M Lysons, Mag. Brit, i, 627.
154 Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii, 435.
PRINCES RISBOROUGH CHURCH : WINDOW IN SOUTH AISLE
PRINCES RISBOROUGH : PANM.I.IN<. IN THE MANOR HOUSE
STONE HUNDRED
In 1684 Thomas Meade left £100 to be laid out
in land, the rents and profits to be applied in appren-
ticing to trades (except husbandry). The legacy was
laid out in the purchase of land, in respect of which
at the inclosure in 1820, 3 a. or. lop. in Near Side
Field were allotted for the poor. The land is let at
£3 101. a year.
In 1713 Mrs. Katherine Pye by deed settled lands
in Towersey for educational and eleemosynary pur-
poses in the parishes of Bradenham, Towersey,
Princes Risborough, Hughenden, and West Wycombe.
The land, known as Quash Farm, contains about fifty-
three acres awarded under the Towersey Inclosure Act,
1822, producing a net income of about £60 a year.
By an order of the Charity Commissioners, dated I 5
March 1904, made under the Board of Education
Act, 1 899, the part of the endowment applicable for
educational purposes was determined to be an annual
sum of £36 for schooling certain children of the said
parishes, and an annual sum of £l li. SJ. for books
for such children leaving school. The yearly sum of
£ l 2 is payable under the deed of foundation to six
poor widows, or widows and maids of Bradenham,
Towersey, and West Wycombe, 40*. to each ; £5 to
the treasurer, and 40;. for the expenses of the trustees,
and the surplusage, if any, in apprenticing.
The sum of £% los. is received as the share of
CUDDINGTON
Princes Risborough, and applied to general school
expenses.
In 1772 Richard Stratton by will bequeathed
£ 500 to the governors of Christ's Hospital, to secure
the nomination of one poor boy belonging to Princes
Risborough.
Elizabeth Eustace, by deed 5 July 1784, gave cer-
tain lands for providing 'lots of linen ' for the poor.
On the inclosure I a. o r. 27 p. were allotted in respect
thereof, which is let at £4 los. a year, of which the
sum of £i 3/. is paid to the parish of Bledlow. In
1905 linen to the value of £s. was given to each of
twelve recipients, and it. was retained by each of the
five trustees in pursuance of the provisions of the deed.
The Poor's Land allotted on the inclosure contains
39 a. 3 r. 1 1 p., let to fifteen tenants at £30 a year.
The net proceeds are distributed in coal among the
cottagers.
The Church Land consists of 3 2 p. at Longwick,
let at £i it. a year, which is applied towards the
church expenses.
The Baptist Chapel in Bell Street, erected in 1 707,
in addition to the Minister's House, is possessed of a
house at Parkficld, let at £12 a year. By an order
of the Charity Commissioners, dated 11 March 1898,
new trustees of the trust property, including the old
and new burial-ground, were appointed.
THE HUNDRED OF STONE
CUDDINGTON
Cudintuna (xii cent.) ; Codyntone (xiv cent.)
Coddington (xvi cent.).
Cuddington is a small parish, bounded on the
north by the River Thame and on the south by
its tributary Dad Brook. It contains 1,307$ acres,1
and the land varies from 200 ft. to 400 ft. above
the Ordnance datum. The subsoil is Portland Beds
and London Clay.' The people are entirely engaged
in agriculture. There are 620 acres of arable land
and 627 J of permanent grass.3
No main road passes through the parish, and the
village lies at the point where the cross road from
Haddenham meets that from Chearsley and Dinton.
The ground falls from south to north towards the River
Thame, and the church is at the north end of the
village, with the school close to it on the west, and
Tyringham House, now used as a reading-room, a
little beyond it to the north. The country in
general is open, with little timber except in the
neighbourhood of the village.
Tyringham House at the present day it a small
two-story building, standing east and west, with
wrought stone window frames and quoins, containing a
hall with a room over it and a staircase on the south.
It is an early 17th-century building, and the date
over the doorway to the staircase, 1609, is probably
that of its erection. The hall is a handsome room with
a square-headed bay window of five lights, and on either
side of the bay a two-light window, all having
mullions and transoms, and the same arrangement is
1 Ord. Sunr.
» y.C.H. Buck,, i, Geological map.
' Information from Bd. of Agric. (1905).
* f.C.H. Bttkt. i, ijii, 133,1.
' Sloane MS. 940, fol. 108.
• Polar Eeel. (Rec. Com.), i, IOI.
267
repeated on the first floor, where there is a room of
the same size as the hall. Both have fireplaces in
the north wall, opposite to the windows, and the
rooms have been formerly panelled in wood. The
entrance to the house is through a cottage built against
its east wall.
The nearest station is 4$ miles away, at Thame on
the Great Western Railway.
CUDDINGTON is not mentioned in
M4NOR Domesday Book, but was probably includ-
ed in the vill of Haddenham, which was
assessed at 40 hides.4
The manor appears first in the confirmation by
Archbishop Theobald of a grant, made by William
Rufus, to the priory of St. Andrew, Rochester.
Haddenham was granted 'cum manerio quod
appendit Cudintuna nomine,' and this manor pre-
sumably had been included in the previous grants of
Haddenham.* Before the dissolution of the priory,
Cuddington Manor is mentioned separately amongst
its possessions, and was valued together with the
rectory at £34 61. 8</. a year.*
It was granted, however, by the prior to Sir
Edward North, and was recovered by the Crown at
the same time as the manor of Haddenham (q.v.).7
The history of Cuddington Manor diverges from
that of Haddenham from this time, and becomes
obscure. Queen Mary granted it to Thomas White,
John White, Roger Martin, and William Blackwell
to hold to them, their heirs and assigns.' Queen
7 See Haddenham ; Pat. 31 Hen. VIII,
pt i, m. 35.
1 Pat. 5 It 6 Phil, and Mary pt. ].
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Elizabeth, however, seems to have recovered possession
of the manor, which she sold to Lord Cheyne,9 and at his
request granted it to John Dudley and John Ascoughe
in 1 575. 10 From these grantees
it appears to have come into
the possession of the Tyring-
hams of Lower Winchendon.
This, however, is not defi-
nitely stated in any of the
documents in which the manor
of Cuddington is mentioned.
The family certainly had land
in the parish," and one branch
probably resided in the house
now called Tyringham House,
close to the church. In 1654
Thomas Tyringham of Lower
Winchendon sold the capital messuage or site of the
manor of Cuddington, called ' the Farme House,'
with land in the parish to Dr. Henry Wilkinson,
Prebendary of Christ Church, Oxford, and Lady Vere
his wife, for ^1,800."
An attempt is said to have been made by James
Herbert, lord of the manor of Haddenham, who died
in 1721, to obtain possession of the manor of Cud-
dington, but evidently without success."
The manor is mentioned in 1 805, apparently being
in the possession of William Clarke,14 but some years
TYRINGHAM. Axure
a saltire engrailed ar-
gent.
later the Rev. David Jones, curate of Cuddington,
said that there was no manor there and all the tenures
were freehold. This seems to have been in l8z6.14
The Prior and Convent of St. Andrew held the manor
of Cuddington in frankalmoign.16 They also obtained
a grant of free warren in their demesne lands there
from Edward I in 1295."
In Cuddington, as in Haddenham,19 a military tenant
of the priory of St. Andrew paid homage to the Bishop
of Rochester, and therefore is found amongst the
bishop's tenants.
His land apparently is mentioned in 1210—12, but
the name of the tenant is not given.19
In the reign of Henry III John son of Miles held
certain lands of the bishop, for which he paid scutage
at the rate of \od. whenever the bishop paid 40*.**
It is not definitely said that this land was in Cud-
dington, but it seems probable that it was the land
that Richard Franklyn held in 1302-3."
His land was held in 1 346 by John Franklyn,
Roger Beel, John de Saunterdon, and John atte
Asshe."
In the 1 4th century Geoffrey Darches held land in
Cuddington. In 1321—2 he granted a messuage
there, with land and rent, to Robert de Upton, clerk, for
his life.*3 This land descended to his son Richard,*4
and finally to Joan, the heiress of Darches." She
married Sir John Dinham, who died in
CUDDINGTON CHURCH FROM THE SOUTH-EAST
29.
9 Exch. Dep. Mich. 25 & 26 Eliz. no.
9-
10 Pat. 17 Eliz. pt. 5, m. 15, 27.
11 Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. 38 Eliz.
"Close, 1654, pt. 7.
18 Lysons, Mag. Brit, i, 547.
14 Recov. R. East. 45 Geo. Ill, rot. 342.
15 Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii, 131.
18 Cott. MS. Dom. x, foL 105 ; cf. Had-
denham.
M Chart. R. 23 Edw. I, no. 88.
18 See Haddenham.
19 Red Bk. of Exch. (Rolls Sen),
474-
268
w Testa de Ne-vill (Rec. Com.), 245.
91 Feud. Aids, i, 97.
M Ibid. 122.
88 Feet of F. Bucks. Hil. 15 Edw. II.
44 Chan. Inq. p.m. 18 Edw. II, no.
18.
25 See Little Kimble.
STONE HUNDRED
CUDDINGTON
seised of a toft, cottages, and land in Cuddington,
held in right of his wife." On the death of their son
Lord Dinham, his lands, including these tenements,
were divided amongst his four sisters and heiresses."
About this time, however, their possessions in Cud-
dington were called the manor of Cuddington." In
1502 Elizabeth, the widow of Lord Dinham, re-
covered seisin of one-third of this manor" to hold in
dower. The manor was divided into four parts after
her death, and it is impossible to trace their later his-
tory.** Two of these parts were however bought by
Ralph Redman, William Hawtrey, and Richard Holy-
man in 1576 and 1576-7," and probably came into
the possession of Richard Holyman. He and another
Richard Holyman were defendants some years later"
in a lawsuit as to the customs of the manor of Had-
denham.
Their family had, however, been settled in Cud-
dington many years before this, for John Holyman,
Bishop of Bristol from 1554 to 1558, was born there,
and must have belonged to the tame family." In
1620-1 Robert Holyman, sen., held a messuage,
land, and various rights in Cuddington." At the
present day there is a
farm called Holyman'sFarm
in the parish.
The Dinhams held this
land of the Prior of Ro-
chester, as of the manor
of Haddenham." The
service due from it is not
given, but as a third part
was assigned in dower, it
was probably held by mili-
tary service."
A water-mill in Had-
denham is mentioned in
the grant of the manor of
Cuddington to John Dud-
ley." At this time Cud-
dington seems to have
been included in Had-
denham parish, so that the mill may have been
at Cuddington. In 1588 a water-mill called Cud-
dington Mill was held by Richard Holyman the
younger." He had let it on lease for twenty-one
years to Thomas Tyringham in 1582 ; Tyringham,
however, bought the freehold, with its appurtenances,
for £650 in 1588." His son, Thomas Tyringham,
together with Sir John Dormer, sold this water-mill
to Richard Mills in 1617."
Ellen, the only daughter and heiress of Richard
Mills, married Sir Francis Knollys, let." After her
death Cuddington Mill came to her son Richard
Knollys," who sold it again to Thomas Tyringham
of Lower Winchcndon and his wife Ellen. They
paid £1,100 for two water-mills under one roof,
with their appurtenances, called Cuddington Mills.41
Attached to these mills were rights of free fishing
in the water of Cuddington. The Holymans how-
ever retained their right to a free fishery in Cudding-
ton after the sale of the mill.44
A free fishery in the water of Evershipp in Cud-
dington is also frequently mentioned. In 1577 it
was in the possession of the Human Js," but in 1 6 1 1
John Burnand, sen., and John Burnand, jun., sold
it to Simon Mayne.4* His descendants held this
fishery till 1679, when it was sold to William Lam-
bourne,47 who had already acquired other fishing
rights in Cuddington.49
A century later, in 1771-3, Richard Lambourne
held a free fishery here."
The church of Sr. NICHOLAS
CHURCH consists of a chancel 24 ft. 7 in. by 1 5 ft.
5 in., with a small vestry ; a nave 49 ft.
4 in. by 15ft. 2 in., with north aisle 36ft. 2 in. by
1 1 ft. 6 in., a south aisle 5 ft. 4$ in. wide, south-east
chapel I 3 ft. 3 in. by 1 9 ft. 5 in., and south porch;
and a western tower lift. 6 in. by loft. 7 in., all
measurements being internal. The development of the
building appears to have been as follows : — In the 1 2th
PLAN OF ST. NICHOLAS' CHURCH, CUDDINCTON
century there existed an aisleless nave of the same
width as now, but perhaps a little shorter from east
to west, with a chancel smaller in both dimensions than
that now in existence. A series of enlargements began
in the early years of the 1 3th century, the first being
probably the building of a transept chapel at the north-
east of the nave, and the rebuilding of the chancel.
North and south aisles were soon afterwards added, the
south aisle having an arcade of four evenly spaced bays,
while the north arcade seems to have been set out with
the idea of not disturbing the arch of the north
transept, and there was in consequence a break between
the first and second b.iys of the arcade. At a later
date the arcade was made continuous, the west respond
of the east bay (the former transept) being made into
an octagonal column by adding a half-octagon to it on
» Chan. Inq. p.m. 36 Hen. VI, no.
39-
V Ibid, voL 1$, no. 58.
• De Banco R. Mich. 18 Hen. VII,
•.tic
» Ibid. Mich. 19 Hen. VII, m. 116.
*> Feet of f. Div. Cos. Mich, i Hen.
VIII ; Chan. Inq. p.m. voL 31, no. 21 ;
Feet of F. Buck.. Trin. zi Hen. VIII.
»i Ibid. Trin. 1 8 Elii. ; ibid. HiL 19
Eli*.
•> Exch. Dep. by Com. Mich. 25 *
16 Eliz. no. 19.
" Diet. Nat. Biog. xnrii, 114-1$.
M Feet of F. Bucki. HiL 1 8 Ja». I.
*• Chan. Inq. p.m. 36 Hen. VI, no.
39 ; ibid. vol. 15, no. 58 ; ibid. vol. 31,
no. 21.
*• De Banco R. Mich. 18 Hen. VII,
m. i if.
* Pat. 27 Elir. pt. 5, m. 15.
* Cloie, 31 Eliz. pt. 15, no. I.
"Ibid.
40 Feet of F. Buck«. Trin. 14 Jai. I j
LIpicomb, Hiit. of Butkt, i, 519.
"Ibid, i, 528.
41 Clo«e, 1649, pt. 26, m. 12. «• Ibid.
« Feet of F. Buck*. HiU 18 Jai. L
« Ibid. Ea.t. 19 Eliz.
« Ibid, g Jai. I.
«7 Ibid. 31 Chaa.II.
« Ibid. Mich. 24 Chat. IL
•Ibid. HiL 13 Geo. III.
269
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
the west side. The second bay in the north arcade
is therefore wider than those to the west of it, and
while copying the details of the rest has a label of
early 14th-century section, giving a clue to the time
of the alteration. In the latter part of the 1 3th
century a further enlargement took place, the east
bays of the south aisle being widened to form a
south chapel. At a later date, difficult to fix,
but perhaps in the iyth century, the north aisle
was shortened by one bay, the western bay of the
north arcade being replaced by a solid wall. The
south porch is an addition of c. 1340, and the west
tower is of 15th-century date. The small north
vestry is modern.
The east window of the chancel is a modern one of
three cinquefoiled lights with tracery of 14th-century
style. In the north wall is a small plain modern door
to the vestry and at the west a square-headed I 5th-cen-
tury window of two cinquefoiled lights with tracery
over. In the south-east angle of the chancel is a small
hexagonal moulded bracket with a shallow pin-hole in
its upper surface. In the south wall is a square-headed
14th-century window with two cinquefoiled lights
and quatrefoiled spandrels, and to the west of it another
window of the same date but of two trefoiled lights
with a quatrefoil over and a two-centred head. The
chancel arch is of two roll-moulded orders with an
undercut label to the west, which is continued as a
string north and south to the walls of the nave.
The responds of the arch are half-octagonal, with
moulded capitals and bases of the same details as the
eastern responds of the nave arcades. The nave is of
four bays, the first bay of the north arcade having an
arch of two chamfered orders, with a filleted roll for a
label. The first column of this arcade is octagonal,
having been made up, as already noted, from the
respond of the transept arch. All the other columns
of the arcades are circular, and the arches are of two
hollow-chamfered orders with the angles of the cham-
fers bevelled off, the workmanship being rather rough
and uneven. This is particularly the case with the
wider arch (the second), in the north arcade, which, as
already explained, is probably an early 14th-century
alteration. The first column of the south arcade, and
the second of the north 0° have circular capitals with
fluted scallops, a survival of Romanesque forms, while all
the other columns have plainly moulded capitals. The
present west respond of the north arcade, which is of
three bays only, is really a round column half buried
in the walling of the blank western bay. The west
respond of the south arcade is a half-octagon, like that
at the east.
The north aisle has an early 14th-century east
window of three cinquefoiled lights with modern
tracery and an external scroll-moulded label. In the
north wall of the aisle, to the east, is a modern win-
dow in an old opening, with two trefoiled lights and
tracery of 14th-century style. The north door is also
modern, with plain chamfered jambs and two-centred
head, and west of this is a two-light window of I 7th-
century date with rounded uncusped heads and a flat
lintel. The west window is probably of the same
date, and is of three uncusped lights with smaller un-
cusped lights over and a four-centred head.
The south chapel has a late 13th-century east win-
dow of three uncusped lights with much-restored in-
terlacing tracery. There are internal and external
labels, and jamb-shafts with moulded capitals and
bases, both having a member ornamented with a cable
pattern. In the south wall are two windows, the
openings of which are of the same date as the east
window, but have been cut back in the ijth century
and filed with tracery of two narrow trefoiled lights
with smaller lights over under a square head. On the
internal jambs portions of the I 3th-century jamb-shafts
and the cable-moulded capitals and bases are still visible.
At the east end of the south wall is a 15th-century
piscina with chamfered jambs and trefoiled head.
The chapel opens to the south aisle by an arch of two
moulded orders, of rough late 13th-century workman-
ship, with responds of three half-round shafts separated
by square projections, having coarsely-cut and moulded
capitals and bases. The north respond is somewhat
clumsily set against the second column of the south
arcade, and the south respond is pushed back into
the south wall of the nave to make the passage-way
from the aisle as wide as possible.
The south doorway of the nave is of the date of
the south aisle, and has a pointed arch of two
orders with filleted rolls and a band of dog-tooth
ornament on the outer order. In the jambs are
circular shafts with coarsely moulded capitals and
bases. The south porch has a small modern west
window, and an outer archway of two moulded
orders c. i 340.
The tower, of the 1 5th century, is of three stages
with an embattled parapet, above which rises the turret
of a north-east staircase. The belfry openings are of
two cinquefoiled lights with a quatrefoil over, and the
west window of the ground stage is of three cinque-
foiled lights under a four-centred head, the second
stage being lighted by small trefoiled openings. The
west doorway has a four-centred head, and jambs with
continuous mouldings.
The font is of late 12th-century date, having a
slightly tapering circular bowl, carved with narrow
pointed flutings, and a short stem with a roll-moulded
base.
The roofs throughout the church are modern, and
though there is a good deal of old material used up in
the open seating there is no woodwork of any particular
interest. A plain 17th-century altar-table has been
preserved. In the east window of the south aisle are
two heads of angels in 15th-century glass.
The tower contains six bells, all cast by John
Warner & Sons in 1884, and a sanctus which is.
blank.
The plate is modern, and comprises a silver-gilt
chalice, paten and flagon, and a silver paten.
The first book of the registers contains burials be-
tween 1653 and 1812 ; the second baptisms between
1663 and 1811, and the third marriages from 1698
to 1750; while the first printed book of marriages
contains entries from 1754 to 1812.
The chapel of Cuddington was ap-
ADVOWSON pendant to the church of Haddenham,.
and was held by the Priory of St.
Andrew, Rochester, until its dissolution in 1 540."
The vicarage of Haddenham was ordained by Bishop
Hugh of Wells (1209-35) and appropriated to the
50 These are really the corresponding
columns in the two arcades, as that on the
north was the first from the east as origin-
ally set out, the transept arch not being
reckoned as part of the arcade.
270
"CottMS. Dom.x,fol. 105 ; Dugdale*
Mon. i, 169.
STONE HUNDRED
Priory." It consisted of the whole altarage of Had-
denham Church and all the chapel of Cuddington, the
vicar finding a chaplain to celebrate at the latter
place."
The advowson of the vicarage of Cuddington, to-
gether with that of Haddenham, was granted by
Henry VIII to the Dean and Chapter of Rochester,
who are the patrons at the present day." Queen
Elizabeth in I 5 79 granted to Edward Thomlynson
and Anthony Page, their heirs and assigns, all the late
free chapel of Cuddington, commonly called Cudding-
ton Chapel, with all land belonging to it, but this grant
does not seem to have taken effect." There is a Bap-
tist chapel in Cuddington, built in 1831, and a
Wesleyan chapel which was built in 1894.
Nicholas Almond, by deed of feoff-
CHARITIES ment bearing date 4 April 1 8 Charles I,
conveyed a parcel of land, part of
Middle Moor, containing between five and six acres,
upon trust that the rents and profits should be applied for
apprenticing or otherwise for the benefit of the poor,
subject to the payment of 61. %J. to the minister for
DINTON
preaching a sermon every Easter Monday. In 1906
the sum of £14 I 5/. was received as rent of the Moor,
which, after payment of 6/. 8V. for a sermon, was
applied, together with a sum of £\ charged in 1695
by William Almond on land called Nunhcycs, in the
distribution of I/, to each recipient.
The poor are also entitled to receive one sack of
wheat, and two sacks of barley out of the Great
Tithes, being also the gift of the said Nicholas
Almond.
Thomas Hill, by will, proved in the P.C.C. 7 Jan-
uary 1 804, charged his estate with the payment of a
certain quantity of wheat and barley, which was for-
merly distributed with the last-named charity, but the
distribution was discontinued on the ground that the
bequest was void under the Mortmain Act."
The Rev. John Willis, a former rector, by will
proved in 1855, left £600 consols (with the official
trustees). Theannual dividends, amounting to^l 5, are
applied in accordance with the trusts in the dis-
tribution of coal, 3$ cwts. being given to each
recipient.
DINTON
Daniton (xi cent.) ; Dunigton (xiii cent.) ; Donyng-
ton (xiv cent ) ; Dynton (xvi cent.).
Dinton is a large parish in the Vale of Aylesbury
and it lies in three hundreds. The village of Dinton
and Upton hamlet are in Aylesbury Hundred ;
Moreton Farm or Liberty is in Desborough Hundred,
and Aston Mullins Farm and Waldridge hamlet in
Ashendon Hundred.
The River Thame forms part of the northern
boundary, and Bonny Brook flows from Marsh
hamlet through Dinton parish near Ford. There is
water in the grounds of Dinton Hall.
The subsoil is Kimmeridge Clay, Portland Beds
and Gault ; ' the surface soil is Clay, Sand, and Lime-
stone. The occupation of the inhabitants is entirely
agricultural, 2,288 acres being laid down in permanent
pasture and 1,177^ in arable land.' Duck and
poultry breeding is also carried on. The village of
Dinton lies on a side road running parallel to the
main road from Thame to Aylesbury, at a short
distance to the south. A lower road from Thame
also crosses the parish. The nearest railway station
is at Aylesbury, 4 miles away, for the Great Western,
Great Central, and Metropolitan Extension lines.
The common fields were inclosed under Act of
Parliament, the award being made in 1804.* Various
Anglo-Saxon remains have been found, and are pre-
served at Dinton Hall. The parish is celebrated for
having been the place of residence of two regicides in
the 1 7th century, Simon Mayne at Dinton Hall
and Sir Richard Ingoldsby at Waldridge.
John Bigg, joint secretary to the two regicides,
also lived at Dinton. Tradition names him as the
actual executioner of Charles I. After the Restora-
tion, apparently pursued by remorse, he became a
hermit and lived in a cave in the parish, without
ever changing his clothes. He died in 1696, and
one of his shoes is preserved at Dinton Hall, the other
being in the Ashmolean Museum at Oxford. There
are four hamlets in the parish : Ford, Upton, West-
lington, and Gibraltar. Westlington is the most
considerable of these, and lies to the west of the
grounds of Dinton Hall, the church and village of
Dinton adjoining the same grounds on the east.
Upton is a little farther to the north-east, all three
settlements being built on the southward slope of the
narrow ridge of land along which the Aylesbury road
runs. All this part of the parish is very well timbered,
especially near the church and Hall. On the southern
boundary of the churchyard are some disused alms-
houses of 18th-century brickwork, with a little
timber work of earlier date, the south entrance to the
churchyard being by an archway through the build-
ings. They face on to a pretty green, with the
boundary wall of the Hall gardens on the west, and a
line of tall trees, beneath which the village stocks and
whipping-post yet stand. The road runs on the east
side past two small houses with half-timbered gables
of early 1 7th-century date, which are the two wings
of an H-shaped house, whose central block has been
destroyed, leaving two fireplaces exposed on the wall
of the south wing. The hamlet of Ford, as its nime
implies, lies to the south at the point where the road
from Dinton village crosses the Ford Brook, and
farther to the south stand the farm-houses of Upper
and Lower Waldridge. The small collection of
houses known as Gibraltar is on the main Aylesbury
road, north-west of Dinton village, and about half a
mile to the west of the ridiculous 18th-century ruin
known as Dinton Castle, built in 1769 by Sir John
Vanhattem. Though in itself of no importance, it
stands on a Saxon burial mound from which a number
of valuable objects have been dugout. Besides the
church there are two buildings of historical interest
in the parish, Dinton Hall and Upper Waldridge.
Of these the former, said to have been in great part
" Line. Epii. Reg. Bithop Bck'i Init.
4*-7-
• Mi
"Pit 33 Hen. VIII, pt. 9, m.
••Pat. 21 Elii. pt. 7, m. 38.
•• Ckar. Cam. Ref. i«vi, 73.
271
1 I'.C.H. Buck, i, Geol. Map.
1 Inf. from Bd. of Agric. (1905).
• Com. Indt Avtard,
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
built by Archbishop Warham c. \ 500, has been
much modernized, but shows a few traces of work as
early as the I4th century, though the main part of
the building appears to be of I yth-century date. In
the cellars, under the present drawing-room, is a
curious structure apparently designed to support a
projecting fireplace above (the present fireplace is over
it), and constructed of arched ribs of stone stiffened
by horizontal slabs, and springing from corbels carved
with the masks characteristic of 1 3th and 14th-century
Gothic work.
The plan is quite abnormal, the situation, on the
side of a fairly sharp southerly slope, probably
accounting for this. It is possible that there were at
one time wings extending northwards at either end of
DINTON HALL : THE STAIRCASE
the existing house, which runs east and west, and is
entered from the north. The north face has been
much restored in modern times and little or none of
the old masonry, whether stone or brick, remains.
The entrance doorway opens to a corridor running
east and west, at either end of which is a I yth-century
staircase. On a level with the corridor are two
rooms facing south, the western of which is panelled
from floor to ceiling with very fine moulded oak
panels of large size and late 17th-century date. In a
bedroom over these rooms is a mantel of 16th-century
date, with carved ornament which seems a later addition.
East of this central portion are the kitchen and
offices, on the north elevation of which is a brick
cloister with plain three-centred arches. West of the
hall, and at a higher level, is the drawing-room,
which has been completely redecorated in compara-
tively modern times. Opening out of it to the west
is a small room of one story, once used as a chapel,
and probably mediaeval, though its open timber roof
is of 18th-century date, and there are no masonry
details of an earlier period now visible. Above the
drawing-room is a large room partly in the roof, ex-
tending from north to south of the house, in which
are preserved a number of curiosities more or less
connected with the Hall.
The south front was largely rebuilt in the i8th
century, a contemporary drawing show-
ing it fitted with sash windows. In
comparatively recent times, however, this
front was restored to what must have
been, approximately, its original con-
dition, with stone mullioned casements.
Upper Waldridge, now a farmhouse, is
a picturesque example of early i yth-cen-
tury design. The main feature of the
plan as it now exists is a large central
stack of chimneys, the shafts of which
are set anglewise above the tiled roof.
Round this the rooms are grouped, open-
ing out of each other with no attempt
at corridor or suite planning, the staircase
being on the south side. As the house
evidently extended farther to the east, it
is possible that what remains is one wing
and half the main block of an H-shaped
house. The original work is all half-
timber filled wilh herring-bone brick-
work, but the south and west faces have
been refronted later in the iyth century
with a thin skin of brickwork, with stone
mullioned and transomed windows set in
projecting brick panels with ribbed brick
cornices and base-moulds. The north
gable remains in its original state, and
has a very pretty projecting gabled window
on the first floor, of five latticed lights
with wooden mullions and a transom.
In the time of Edward
MANORS the Confessor DINTON was
held by Avelin, one of his
thegns, but after the Norman Conquest
it was granted to the Bishop of Bayeux.4
It was assessed in Domesday Book at
1 5 hides of land.' Bishop Odo lost all
his lands under William Rufus, and
many of them afterwards came into the possession
of the family of Munchesney. Dinton presumably
followed the history of Swanscombe in Kent, which
belonged to the barony of the Bishop of Bayeux, and
was held by the same under-tenant, Helto, in io86.6
Swanscombe was the head of the honour of the
Mi nchesneys, and in the early izth century was held
by Geoffrey Talbot.7 He died in 1140 during the
civil wars of the reign of Stephen,8 and his barony
passed to Walter of Meduana. Walter's widow,
Cecilia, Countess of Hereford by her first husband,
Roger Fitz Miles of Gloucester, Earl of Hereford,
4 V.C.H. Buck,, i, 234*.
» Ibid.
• See V.C.H. Kent, iii, Topog.
1 Red Bk. ofExcb. (Rolls Ser.), 195.
272
» Chron. of Sufi,. Hen. II, and Ric. I
(Rolls Ser.), iii, 37, 38, 68.
STONE HUNDRED
DINTON
and daughter of Payne Fitz John, held his barony
after her husband's death. She seems to have been
succeeded in the barony by her nephews, the sons of
her sister, Agnes de Munchesney,' but in 1185 Agnes
herself held Dinton.**
In 1190-1 the latter
was a tenant in chief
in Buckinghamshire,"
but she must have
died very shortly after-
wards. Possibly she
held as a sub-tenant
of her eldest son, Ralph
de Munchesney," who
obtained various pri-
vileges in Dinton dur-
ing the reign of Henry
II." He seems to
have died before 1 196,
when Cecilia, Coun-
tess of Hereford, and
William de Munches-
ney, the second son, an-
swered for 29 knights'
fees of the honour of
Walter de Meduana.15
He was succeeded by
his son William, a minor
in 1 204." The latter
only lived till 1213,
and was succeeded by
Warine dc Munchesney,1* presumably his brother,
who held the manor ' by ancient tenure by the
gift of the king.'" He was living in 1253," but
in the next year William de Valence had obtained
a grant of the manor." He had married Joan,
daughter of Warine de Munchesney," and tried
to wrest the inheritance from her brother William, of
whose lands and person he had custody." This
latter William, however, obtained seisin of his lands,"
of Dyonisia, and further efforts to oust her from her
inheritance also failed." She married Hugh de Vere,"
but had no children, so that Dinton finally came to
the Valences, as the heirs of Joan de Munchesney,
MOMCHIIHIY. Or
thru Kutchtoni tarry vair
and guilt.
VAUMCK. liurilly ar-
gent and azure an orle of
martlitt guilt.
and died leaving an only daughter Dyonisia."
William de Valence again attempted to get possession
of her lands, casting doubts upon her legitimacy.
The Bishop of Worcester gave his judgement in favour
DINTON : UPPER WALDRIDGH
Dyonisia died about 1314," and Aymer de Valence,
son of the above-mentioned William de Valence, Earl
of Pembroke, and Joan his wife, succeeded to her pos-
sessions." Aymer, some time between 1316" and his
death in 1324," granted the manor to his wife Mary
de St. Paul, Countess of Pembroke, who held it for
life.19 Subsequently his lands were partitioned
amongst the heirs of his sisters,30 and Dinton came to
Elizabeth Comyn, who married Richard Talbot."
Talbot granted the reversion of the manor to Thomas
Talbot, clerk, and his heirs,3' and on the death of the
Countess of Pembroke in 1377-8 the manor passed to
Gilbert Talbot, the great-nephew of Thomas.13
Finally in 1384 this Gilbert Talbot granted the
manor to Sir John Devereux," who had already
become his tenant for a term of years." Sir John
died in 1 392—3, and was succeeded by his son John,
a minor.** The latter, however, died three years
later, his sister Joan, wife of Walter, Lord Fitz
Walter, inheriting his lands." Joan died in 1409,
having survived her husband, and left two sons,
Humphrey and Walter.*5 Humphrey died while
still under age, and was succeeded by his brother,
who in 1423 sold the manor to John Barton, sen., and
John Barton, jun." The latter died in I433-4,40
having held it in common with John Longvillc and
others, who, however, do not appear to have had any
• Rat. dt Dominakut (ed. Grimaldi), 16.
•» Ibid. 20.
10 Rid Bk. ofExcb. (Roll* Ser.), 71.
>* Rir. dt Dominakui, 26.
" Plac. dt Quo (far. (Rec. Com.), 85.
« Red Bk. ofExch. (Rollt Ser.), 96.
>« Cal. Roe. Chart. (Rec. Com.), 133 |
Pipe R. 6 John, m. 2.
" Fine R. 1 5 John, m. i.
>• Tata dt Ntvill (Rec. Com.), 145*.
» Cal. of Chart. R. 1126-57, p. 42*.
>• Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, ji.
1* Hilt. Angl. (Rolli Ser.), iii, 301.
*> Ibid. 346.
*> Tata dt Ntvill (Rec. Com.), 260.
«• HunJ. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 44-
» Rot. Part. (Rec. Com.), i, 38 ; Feud.
AUi, i, 97.
M Chin. Inq. p.m. 7 Edw. II, no. 51.
*» Ibid. » Ibid.
* Ftud. Aidi, i, 113.
* Chin. Inq. p.m. 17 Edw. II, 7$.
M Ftud. Aidt, i, 122 j Chan. Inq. p.m.
51 Edw. Ill (nt not.), no. 28.
273
M Chan. Inq. p.m. 17 Edw. II, no. 75.
11 Ibid. Ji Edw. Ill (lit no..), no. 28.
M Ibid. •» Ibid.
" Cloie, 8 Ric. II, m. 28 d.
•» Cal. Pat. 1381-5, p. 471.
M Chan. Inq. p.m. 17 Ric. II, no. iff.
*> Ibid. 20 Ric. II, no. 24 ; ibid. 21
Ric. II, no. 20.
** Chan. Inq. p.m. 10 Hen. IV, no. 40.
H Cloie, 2 Hen. VI, m. 2, 3, 7 ; ibid.
4 Hen. VI, m. 18.
40 Chan. Inq. p.m. n Hen. VI, no. 35.
35
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
right in the manor after his death.41 His sisters were
his heiresses, but Dinton was settled on his wife
Isabella." A certain Andrew Sparlyng was seised of
the manor to the use of Isabella and sold it to Sir
Robert Whitingham ** and other feoffees, Isabella
holding it for her life by a grant from the new
tenants. Sir Robert was a strong Lancastrian par-
tisan, and on the success of the Yorkist cause he for-
feited all his lands, which were granted by Edward IV
to Sir Thomas Montgomery, first for life and finally
in fee-tail." Margery Whitingham, Sir Robert's
heiress, had however married John Verney, the son of
Sir Ralph Verney, a Yorkist, who had rendered great
service to his party. Consequently many attempts
were made to recover the Whitingham lands. Sir
Ralph first obtained a grant of the reversion of the
manor of Dinton, a prudent measure since Mont-
gomery was elderly and childless.46 Long law suits
ensued and 46 the Verneys, on the accession of
Henry VII, changed the ground of their claim from
the Yorkist services of Sir Ralph to the faithfulness of
Sir Robert Whitingham to the Lancastrian cause.
John Verney finally obtained his wife's lands,47 and
his son, Sir Ralph Verney, jun., held them in peace.48
The Whitingham and Verney monument in Aldbury
WHITINGHAM. Ar~
gent a fesse vert "with a
lion gules otter all.
VERNEY. Atsure a
cross argent with jive
pierced motets gules there-
on.
Church, Hertfordshire, is a complete record of this
phase of the family history.49
Early in the 1 7th century the Verneys sold the
manor of Dinton to Simon Mayne. Between 1585—6
and 1 604, Thomas Saunders appears to have had some
right in the manor, but presumably only as trustee or
mortgagee,50 since there is no record at Dinton of his
ever being lord of the manor.
Simon Mayne bought the manor in 1604," but he
does not seem to have settled there till two years
later.51 He was succeeded by his son, Simon Mayne,
the regicide, who died in the Tower in 1 66 1. By a
special provision he was excepted from enjoying the
benefits of the Act of Indemnity and Oblivion passed
by the Restoration Parliament,53 and his estates were
forfeited to the Crown. It seems probable, however,
that his son and heir recovered possession of the manor
of Dinton. In a dispute as to tithes in 1 794 it was
MAYNE. Argent a
bend sable 'with three
right hands argent there-
on.
stated that Charles II granted the Mayne estates to
James Duke of York, but there is no other record of
the grant.54 Simon Mayne the younger certainly
obtained office after the Re-
storation. He was sub-com-
missioner of Prizes at Ports-
mouth till 1689," and Com-
missioner of Victualling until
the Accession of Queen Anne.56
He also sat in Parliament in
the reigns both of William III
and Anne." In a petition
for a renewal of his Crown
lease of the tithes issuing out
of ' the demesne lands of the
manor of Dinton,' Mayne was
stated to be the owner of
the lands in question.59 This
certainly suggests that he had recovered possession
of the manor.
It is possible that this occurred after the flight of
James II, since Mayne represents himself as having
been devoted to the Protestant interest.69 He died
in 1725, and his son, another Simon, inherited the
manor,60 which he, together with the Hon. Edward
Harley, of Iwood, Herefordshire, Auditor of the Im-
prest, sold to Sir John Vanhattem in 1727." Sir
John Vanhattem died in 1787, and left an only
daughter and heiress, who married the Rev. William
Goodall. Her descendant, Lieut.-Colonel Goodall,
is the present owner of the manor of Dinton.61
The homage of the manors of FORD and ffEST-
LINGTON is said to be included in the manor of
Dinton, while a small manor called BLOMERS be-
longed at one time to the Hampdens, lying intermixed
with Ford.6* It is said to have passed from the
Hampdens to the Claytons and in 1813 was .the
property of the Earl of Chesterfield.63" It now be-
longs to the lord of the manor of Dinton.
The manor of Dinton was held by military service
as one knight's fee.64 At one time one mark was paid
on St. Nicholas' Day for hidage and suit to the shire
court, but this payment was remitted by a charter
granted by Henry III either to Warine de Munches-
ney or William de Valence before I254-65 The latter
held the view of frankpledge for his tenants at that
date,66 and Dyonisia de Munchesney also held the
Assizes of Bread and Ale.67 In 1253 Warine de
Munchesney obtained a grant of free warren for him-
self and his heirs in the demesne lands of Dinton.68
ASTON MULLINS, otherwise known as ASTON
BERNARD, was probably included in the Domesday
Survey either in Ilmer or in Aston Sandford. Both
these townships were in the hands of the Bishop of
Bayeux, and the same under-tenant Robert held both
in demesne.68 It lay in the hundred of Ashendon.
Afterwards Aston Mullins was held with Ilmer, and
like Ilmer did not pass to the Munchesney family.
41 Chan. Inq. p.m. II Hen. VI, no. 35.
43 Early Chan. Proc. bdlc. 9, no. 207.
48 Ibid. ; Cat. Pat. 1436-41, pp. 31, 51.
44 Col. Pat. 1461-7, pp. ill, 367.
44 Ibid. 1467-77, p. 309.
* ferncy Memoirs, i, 41, 42.
4? Feet of F. Div. Cos. Mich. 12
Edw. IV ; ibid. Hil. 2 Ric. III.
49 Chan. Inq. p.m. 44, no. 91.
4« y.C.H. Herts, ii, 146.
60 Feet of F. Bucks. Hil. 28 Eliz.
*' Ibid. Trin. I Jas. I.
6* From information supplied by Lieut.-
Colonel Goodall of Dinton Hall.
63 Treas. Bks. Early Entry Bks. vi, fol.
64-8.
M Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii, 143,
quoting Dec. of Tithe Causes, iv, 443.
" Col. S.P. Dam. 1689-90, p. 295.
64 Treas. Papers, Ixxxix, no. 51.
" Ibid, ccxlviii, no. 41.
« Ibid. •» Ibid.
10 Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii, 153 ;
Dinton Par. Registers.
274
0 From information given by Lieut.-
Colonel Goodall of Dinton Hall.
M Burke, Landed Gentry, 1 906.
83 From information given by Lieut.-
Colonel Goodall.
68* Lysons, Mag. Brit, i, 551.
64 Feud. Aids, i, 97.
65 Hand. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
«« Ibid. 1 Ibid. 44.
» Cal. of Chart. 1226-57, p. 428.
«» V.C.H. Bucks, i, 236/.
STONE HUNDRED
How long they remained in the king's hands after the
forfeiture of Bishop Odo does not appear, but in the
izth century they were held by the family of
Rumenel.70
David de Rumenel held Aston Mullins and died,
probably leaving two daughters." Of these Aubrey
married William de Jarpenville," and brought to her
husband her father's office of marshal of the king's
falcons.™ William died before 1203-4, leaving as
his heir his daughter, Alice de Jarpenville.'4 She
married Thomas Kitz Bernard, from whom the manor
first took its name, and by grant from Aubrey he
became marshal of the royal falcons."
During the lifetime of Aubrey, Thomas held Aston
Mullins, while she kept Ilmer in her own hands.7*
In 1222 Aubrey de Jarpenville was involved in a law-
suit with Robert Achard, Roger de Cauz, Almaric
de Mowers, and Gilbert de St. Clare, who claimed a
moiety of Ilmer and Aston as part of the inheritance
of David de Rumenel," their common ancestor.
Presumably they were the descendants of the second
daughter of David de Rumenel, since they claimed
half his inheritance. The suit, however, resulted in
their yielding their rights to Aubrey." She died before
1226, and her daughter Alice succeeded to her lands."
Ralph Fitz Bernard, the son of Alice and Thomas,
recovered his father's lands in 1214 from the hands
of Isaac of Norwich, a Jew.80 He was succeeded
by John Fitz Bernard. Land in Aston Mullins,
however, was held by Joan, the widow of Ralph
Fitz Bernard, who afterwards married Humbert
Pugeys." John Fitz Bernard was in seisin of the
manor in 1254," but he died a few years later,
leaving his son Ralph as his heir.8* Ralph was still
a minor," and Humbert Pugeys obtained Aston
by a grant of Henry III, presumably to hold in
wardship." In 1284-6 Ralph was himself holding
the manor.** He died between 1 302 w and 1 307,"
his heir being his nephew Thomas, a ward of the
king." Aston Mullins formed part of the dower of
Ralph's widow Agatha,*0 but the reversion of the
manor on her death was granted by Thomas Fitz
Bernard to Sir John Blacket in 1313." The final
conveyance took place in 1315," and Sir John held
it until his death before 1328-9." His widow Gille
married Sir Johjj de Molyns,*4 and the latter acquired
the manor of Aston Mullins from John the son and
heir of Sir John Blacket.** De Molyns obtained fur-
ther security in this manor by releases of their respec-
tive rights from John Fitz Bernard ** and Giles " and
Isabel Blacket." Various letters patent ** and charters
DINTON
from the king were also obtained, one amongst them
granting leave to Sir John de Molyns and his wife
to embattle the house at Aston Mullins.100
In i 344 the manor was seized by the king with
the other lands of Sir John de Molyns,101 but the
next year he regained the king's favour and obtained
fresh grants.10* Gille de Molyns died in 1367-8
seised of the manor of Aston Mullins, which then
passed to her son Sir William de Molyns. '°* The
family held it until 1440, when Sir William de
Molyns died, leaving an only daughter Eleanor.104
She married Sir Robert Hungerford, Lord Hunger-
000
ooo
MOLTNI. Sable
thief or •wit/i ihree l
enget gulet therein.
HuNGi«ro»D. Sable
fan ban and in tht
chief tkrtt nundeli all
mrgnt.
ford and de Molyns. lo* He was taken prisoner in
Gascony during the French War, and to raise his ran-
som of £3,000 Aston Mullins with various other
manors was given in surety to the Bishop of Win-
chester and other feoffees.106 Eleanor, after the death
of her husband, had some difficulty in recovering
possession of these manors.107 Her son Thomas, Lord
Hungerford, succeeded to his mother's possessions.
He was attainted as a Lancastrian, but the sentence
was reversed by Act of Parliament on the accession of
Henry VII, and his daughter Mary recovered her
inheritance.108 She was in the wardship of Lord
Hastings, and was married to his son Edward.10* The
family of Hastings held the manor of Aston Mullins
till 1537, when George Hastings, Earl of Huntingdon,
and his heir Francis, sold it to Michael Dormer."*
Geoffrey Dormer made a settlement of the manor in
1561, by which he was to hold it for seven years, the
reversion being granted to Elizabeth, widow of
William Serjeant, with reversion to Richard Serjeant
her son and his wife Marian Boiler."1 Marian sur-
vived her husband, and held the manor till 1614."'
Her son William Serjeant also predeceased her, and
Richard her grandson succeeded to the manor.1" The
?• Cart. Antiq. I, 305 Feet of F. Buck*.
6 Hen. III.
7> Ibid.
7* Cart. Antiq. I, 30.
" Ibid.
'• Ibid.
•s Ibid.
» Fife R. (Pipe R. Soc.), «JT, 130; Feet
of F. Bucki. 6 Hen. III.
" Ibid. | Maitland, Bracmn'i Note Bk.
case 301.
7» Ibid.
n Excerfta t Rat. Fin. (Rec. Com.), i,
If*.
•» y.C.H. Kent, iii, Topog. Manor of
Kingidown; Teita dt Ntvill (Rec. Com.),
254*; Rat. Lit. Clara. (Rec. Com.), i,
181*.
n Atiiie R. 56, m. 42 d.
» HunJ. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 15.
83 Chan. Inq. p.m. 44 Hen. Ill, no. 10° Chart. R. 10 Edw. Ill, m. 26, no.
« Ibid.
" Auize R. 56, m. 41 d.| 57, m. 3 d. 5
Tata dt Ntvill (Rec. Com.), 245*.
* Feud. Aidi, i, 84.
*> Ibid. 94.
" Chan. Inq. p.m. I Edw. II, no. 25.
"Ibid.
*> Cat. Pat. 1307-13 p. 551.
•» Ibid.
•* Feet of F. Bucka. Mich. 9 Edw. II.
" Feud. Aids, i, 1141 Chan. Inq. p.m.
1 Edw. Ill (nt not.), no. 27.
M Ibid. 41 Edw III (lit not.), no. 42.
M Feet of F. Buck.. Hil. 9 Edw. III.
* Ibid. Mich. 1 3 Edw. III.
"• Cloie, 21 Edw. Ill, pt. i, m. 29.
M Ibid. 32 Edw. Ill, pt. I, m. 27.
N Cal. Pat. 1334-8, pp. 195, 212.
275
Hen.
55-
m Cal. Clou, 1343-6, PP- "9*, 4*9-
"» Ibid. pp. 603-6.
«• Chaa Inq. p.m. 41 Edw. Ill (nt
not.), no. 42.
"o* Ibid. 18 Hen. VI, no. 38.
u* Feet of F. Diy. Cot. Eatt. 38
VI.
1M Cloie, 38 Hen. VI, m. 9.
10" Early Chan. Proc. bdle. 28, no. 1 1 1.
10» Material, far Hilt, of Hen. yil (Rolla
Ser.), i, 132.
lw G.E.C. Comflett Peerage.
"° Recov. R. Mich. 29 Hen. VIII j
Feet of F. Bucka. Mich. 29 Hen. VIII.
111 Feet of F. Bucki. Trin. and Mich.
3 Elit.
111 Chan. Inq. pjn. (Ser. 2), cccxliii,
no. 143. "» Ibid.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Serjeants held Aston Mullins till the 1 8th century,
and the last members of the family who are mentioned
as holding it were Jane Serjeant, widow, and Winwood
Serjeant.114
In 1793 Matthew Raper and his wife Anne owned
the manor,115 and in 1827 Henry Raper had succeeded
them.118 General Raper was lately in possession of a
farm called Aston Mullins in Dinton parish, but it
has now passed into other hands.117
The manor of Aston Mullins was held in grand
serjeanty, together with Ilmer, the holder being the
marshal of the king's falcons.118 This service was
unchanged until the abolition of feudal tenures, the
last mention of it being in 1613, on the death of
William Serjeant. The manor was then held of the
king-in-chief ' by the service of serjeanty, viz., Mar-
shal of the goshawks and birds of the King.' "* Sir
John de Molyns, owing to the high favour in which
be stood with Edward III, obtained the grant of
many liberties and franchises within his manors, the
chief being the return of writs, in-fangthief, out-
fangthief, gallows ; freedom from toll, murage, pavage,
and pontage, throughout the kingdom, for himself and
his tenants, and free warren in his demesne land.180
Early in the 1 3th century, a considerable number
of alienations of this serjeanty seem to have taken
place. Though only Ilmer is mentioned, the aliena-
tions in Aston Mullins seem to have been included
under this heading. Robert Passelewe, in the reign
of Henry III, recovered these alienations for the
king. The tenants paid a fixed yearly rent, while
military service was substituted for serjeanty.1'1
Robert Pykoc held I £ virgates of land and pasture
of this serjeanty, and had also granted another half
virgate to Richard Pykoc.1" This land was probably
in Aston Mullins, since a conveyance was made be-
tween John Pykoc and Robert Pykoc of messuages
and land in Aston Mullins and Waldridge in I3lo.ln
After the Norman Conquest Miles Crispin ob-
tained the grant of I J hides of land in Upton,1"
the origin of the estate of NETHER UPTON. In
the Confessor's time it had been held by a thegn
named Albric, and he remained in possession of this
land as a sub-tenant of Miles Crispin.1*6 The lands of
Miles Crispin, together with those of Robert Doyly
afterwards formed the royal honour of Wallingford,1'6
to which this part of Upton belonged.187 In the
1 2th century William de Upton appears to have been
the tenant of this land. In 1 197 there was a law-
suit between Samson de le Pomerae and his wife
Christian and William as to the service due from
6 virgates of land in Upton, of which Samson appeared
to be the mesne tenant between William de Upton
and the honour of Wallingford.118 Geoffrey, son of
William or Geoffrey de Upton, succeeded his father,119
but in 1235 another William de Upton paid the feudal
dues from the land.180 He was succeeded by Geoffrey
de Upton,131 who, however, granted all his land in
Upton to William Giffard in I267.131 The heirs of
Geoffrey de Upton attempted to recover their posses-
sion and seized the land.133 Long law-suits ensued,
the pleadings being rather obscure. The jurors said
that Geoffrey de Upton never enfeoffed William
Giffard with the tenements in question, namely, one
messuage and 183 acres of land, 8 acres of wood, and
8 acres of meadow, but that the latter entered on the
tenement shortly after the battle of Evesham.
William demised it to Adam de Caudes for life, but
afterwards resumed it into his own hands.134 In spite
of this evidence it was. acknowledged that in 1267
Geoffrey de Upton came before the Chancellor and
quit-claimed for himself and his heirs his manor of
Upton to William Giffard."5 Geoffrey's heirs were
two nieces, Cecilia de Gatesdon and Alice Haket, and
John de Middleton, John de St. Owen, and Robert
Covert. The three last-named were presumably the
nephews of Cecilia and Alice.136 Finally William
Giffard appears to have recovered possession of the
manor.137 During the disseisin of Giffard, John de
Middleton and his co-parceners enfeoffed John le
Waleys and his wife Maud with half of the land in
question. After the death of John, Maud married
Simon de Kingesmede.138 In 1290 they were dis-
seised of their land by Hamo Hawtrey, the descendant
of William Giffard.139
They petitioned the king, and presumably recovered
seisin, since in 1 302-3 Master William Bernel and
Simon de Kingesham (or Kingesmede) 14° held this
part of Upton. In 1346 it was held by Michael atte
Watre and John le Waleys,141 the son and heir of John
le Waleys and Maud.1"
The later history of Nether Upton cannot be
traced. In 1 346 John de Handlo died seised of rents
in Upton by Aylesbury, which he held of the honour
of Wallingford.143 Hence the land from which they
were paid was presumably in Nether Upton. His
heir was a minor, Edmund, son of Richard de
Handlo.144 Edmund died before 1363, and his lands
were divided between his two sisters Margaret the
wife of Sir John Appleby and Elizabeth the wife of
Edmund de la Pole.115
The land in Upton belonging to the honour of
Wallingford was held as the twentieth part of a
knight's fee.146
Before the Norman Conquest Alwin, a thegn of
Queen Edith, held 3^ hides of land in UPTON,
which he could sell as he pleased.147 At the time of
the Domesday Survey this land had passed to William
Peverel,148 and formed part of the honour of Peverel
of Nottingham.149 William Peverel had granted this
land to a sub-tenant named Robert,160 but later it was
held by the family of Hussey.
114 Recov. R. Hil. 2 Anne.
115 Ibid. East. 33 Geo. III.
"« Ibid. 8 Geo. IV.
117 From information supplied by Lieut.-
Colonel Goodall.
"8 Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 25.
118 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), cccxliii,
no. 143.
""Chart. R. n Edw. Ill, m. 17,
no. 56.
141 HunJ. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 25.
1MIbid. 31; Tata de NeviU (Rec.
Com.), 257*.
la» Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 3 Edw. II.
1M f.C.H. Bucks, i, 2610.
IK n,id. 1*6 ibid- 2,4.
"7 Testa de Ne-vill (Rec. Com.), 261.
188 Fines (Rec. Com.), i, 161.
IW Testa de Ne-vill (Rec. Com.), 245* ;
Curia Regis R. (Rec. Com.), ii, 87, 160 ;
Fife R. (Pipe Roll Soc.), xiv, 137.
180 Testa de NeviU (Rec. Com.), 257*,
261, 258.
"! HunJ. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31.
!»> Cal. of Chart, ii, 71.
188 Ciram Rege R. no. 20.
184 Ibid. 14, 20. l"5 Ibid. 20.
"« Ibid. "7 Ibid.
276
188 Rot. Parl. (Rec. Com.;, i, 52*.
"» Ibid.
140 Feud. Aids, i, 97.
"Ubid. 122.
14a Abbrev. Plac. (Rec. Com.), 281-2.
148 Chan. Inq. p.m. 20 Edw. Ill (ist
nog.), no. 51.
"« Ibid.
145 Close, 36 Edw. Ill, m. 38.
146 Teiti de Ne-vill (Rec. Com.), 257^ ;
Feud. Aids, i, 97, 122.
"7 V.C.H. Bucks, i, 2530.
"« Ibid. 14S Cf. Hartwell
«» V.C.H. Such, i, 25 3*.
STONE HUNDRED
The first mention of Upton after the entry in
Domesday Book occurs in 1207, when one knight's
fee in Upton was in the king's hands, but three years
earlier William Hussey held one fee in the county."1
About 1210 Henry Hussey held Upton,1" and in
1 21 1 or 12 1 2 William Hussey is mentioned as the
tenant.1"
Not long after this, however, another Henry Hussey
held it.1*4 In i 302-3 it was held by a sub-tenant of
his heir,1** but after this the name of Hussey does not
appear in connexion with land in Upton.
Henry Hussey granted his fee in Upton to the
abbey of Oseney.11* This grant was confirmed in
HDHIY. Barry ermine
and guJti.
OiiNir ABBEY.
Ature fun htndi or.
I238,"7 and in 1276 the abbot was said to hold the
manor of Upton of Henry Hussey, doing suit at the
court of the honour of Peverel.1** In 1346, how-
ever, he held a knight's fee in « Upton cum Stone ' of
the king in chief,1" and it belonged to the abbey till
its dissolution. '•* The manor of Upton was granted
in 1541 to Sir John Baldwin, Chief Justice of Com-
BALDWIN. Argent
three peurs of oaklcnvei
vert viith itotki uble.
BORLAII. Ermine a
bend table and thereon two
arms coming out of clouiit,
the handi grasfing a
konethoe or.
mon Pleas.1* In his will it was left to the king ' for
the wardship and primer seisin ' of his heirs, Thomas
Pakington and John Borlase.1*1 The latter was the
son of the younger daughter of Sir John, and Upton
formed part of his share of the inheritance.1** The
WALLOP, Earl of
Portsmouth. Argent a
bend wavjr table.
DINTON
Borlases held the manor1*1 until the death of Sir John
Borlase, bart., without heirs male in 1688-9,"* when
the four daughters of his uncle, William Borlase,
inherited Upton."*
John Wallop, who had married Alice, the eldest
sister, apparently bought the other three shares of the
manor. His second son John, who afterwards became
Earl of Portsmouth, inherited it in 1762.'" The
second earl held it in 1789-90,"* and his son and
successor was said to hold it in the first part of the
century."*
Upton is at the present day a sub-manor appendant
to the manor of Dinton, the
land being owned by Mrs.
Parker.1™
The manor of Upton was
held by the military service
due from one knight's fee."1
The Abbot of Oseney held
it in fnnkalmoign of Henry
Hussey and his heirs, paying
5/. a year1" at Michaelmas.
This rent was afterwards paid
to the bailiffs of the honour
of Pcverel.1" The abbot,
however, was answerable for
the service due to the honour, and paid the feudal
dues from his fee."4 In 1254. the bailiff held the
view of frankpledge, pleas of namio vetifo, and the
return of writs within the manor."* The abbot
claimed the view of frankpledge and waifs in the
reign of Edward I. He presented a charter of
Henry III, which confirmed rights granted by
Henry II as warranty, but he renounced his claim
to waifs.17* The Borlase family and their successors
also claimed to hold the view of frankpledge and a
court-leet in their manor of Upton.177
In the time of Edward the Confessor two socmen
held WALDRIDGE. They were respectively the
men of Avelin and of Alveva, sister of Earl Harold,
and they could sell their land at will.178 After the
Conquest this land, containing I hide and 2 virgates,
was granted to the Bishop of Bayeux."' It passed
with the manor of Dinton in succession to the Mun-
chesneys 18° and the Earl of Pembroke ; 1M the last
mention of the overlordship of Waldridge occurs in
1316, and was then held by Aymer de Valence, Earl
of Pembroke.1"
Helto, the steward of the Bishop of Bayeux, held
Waldridge as an under-tenant in io86.lss In
1254, 9 virgates of land were held by John de
Stoke and Richard de Middleton.1" Geoffrey de
Upton also held 3 virgates of land, but his overlord
was said to be Adam Rumbald.14* No further men-
tion of this mesne tenancy appears. Geoffrey, how-
"i Rid Bk. of Excb. (Rolli Ser.), 181,
•37-
"« Ibid. $36.
"• Ibid. 58?.
1" Tata de Ntvttt (Rec. Corn.), 145* ;
Hmd. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31.
lu Feud. Aidt, i, 97.
»• Teia dt Nevill (Rec. Com.), »45*,
158-9, z6ii.
"7 Feet of F. Buck.. Eatt. zz Hen. III.
"• Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31, 44.
»*fW. Aidi, i, 11*.
>« L. and P. Hen. Fill, ivi, 703 (8).
1" Ibid. } Pat. 32 Hen. VIII, pi. 8.
1(1 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Scr. l), Izxiii,
00.7.
"* Feet of F. Div. Cot. Eait. 5 Edw.
VI.
"' Chan. Inq. p.m. (Scr. l), ccclix, no.
48 ; Feet of F. Bucki. Mich. 33 Chat. II.
*** G.E.C. Co* flea Baronetage.
"• Feet of F. Bucki. Mich. 33 Chti.
II ; and Mich, l Will, and Mary.
W G.E.C. Complete Peerage.
ln Recor. R. Ilil. 30 Ceo. III.
"* Lipicomh, Iliit. of Bucks, ii, 1 59.
I'~° From inf. giren by LicuU-Col.
GooJaU.
'"' Rid Bk. of Excb. (Rolli Ser.), 581;.
» Feet of F. Buck*. Bail zz Hen. III.
WPlac. dt Quo ffar. (Rec. Com.),
93-
277
W« Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31 j Foul.
Aidi, i, 97.
W» Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, ji.
»• Plae. deQuo War. (R«. Com.). 93.
W Feet of F. Buck*. Mich. 33 Chat.
II ; Mich. 1 Will, and Mary ; Recov. R.
Hil. 30 Geo. III.
»••• Y.CJi. Buckt. i, 136*.
ir» Ibid.
180 See manor of Dinton ; Hund. R.
(Rec. Com.), i, zc.
"» F,ud. Aidi, i, 1 14.
181 Ibid.
»" y.C.H. Bucki. i, Z36*.
Hund. R. (Rec, Com.), i, 15.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
ever, held more land in Waldridge,186 and in 1267 he
granted it as a member of the manor of (Nether)
Upton (q.v.) to William Giffard.187 The latter, together
with John le Waleys, held 1 1 virgates of land in
I284-6.1*8 The heirs of Geoffrey de Upton at-
tempted to recover Waldridge as well as Upton (q.v.),
with presumably the same result, and its history at
that time is very obscure.189 Five virgates of land in
Waldridge were granted by Edward IV to Sir Thomas
Montgomery in 14.64..™ The reversion in the event
of his dying without heirs male was obtained by
Ralph Verney and Richard Fowler.191 The manor of
Waldridge, however, came into the possession of the
Hampdens. In 1487 Margery, the widow of Thomas
Hampden, claimed a third as her dower and recovered
her seisin.198
Land in Waldridge was held by the family until
the death of Sir Alexander Hampden,193 a fine of
messuages, lands, and rents in Waldridge being levied
in 1622 between two of his heiresses, Anne the wife
of Sir John Trevor, and Margaret the wife of Sir
Thomas Wenman.194
The manor, however, appears to have come into
the possession of the Serjeants before this time. In
1615 William Serjeant died seised of a capital mes-
suage or farm in Waldridge.195
In 1650 Sir Richard Ingoldsby the regicide pur-
chased the manor of Waldridge from the Serjeants
and lived there.198 The family remained as residents
in the parish for many yean, and presumably held
the manor of Waldridge.
In 1 849 it was purchased by the lord of Dinton
Manor, the father of Lieut.-Col. Goodall, and is now
appendant to the main manor.197
In 1254 John de Stoke and Richard de Middleton
paid zos. a year to Warine de Munchesney for the 9
virgates that they held of him.198 They held the view
of frankpledge for their tenants, but made a yearly
payment of zs. to the king for this right.199 Geoffrey
de Upton, however, paid 1 5*. a year to his immediate
lord, and did no forinsec service to the king.*00
The manor or liberty of MORETON belonged to
the hundred of Desborough. It is not mentioned
separately in the Domesday Survey, but it may have
been included in West Wycombe,*01 since it was after-
wards held by the Bishop of Winchester,*0* and was
appendant to his manor of West Wycombe.*01 Bishop
Richard Pope held a court-leet for Moreton in the
reign of Henry VII,*04 but in 1551 Bishop Poynet
surrendered his manors of West Wycombe, Moreton,
and Ivinghoe to the king.*05 The two last-mentioned
manors were, however, restored to the see of Winches-
ter. The bishop held the manor in I6I3,*06 and in
WALLER. Sable three
•walnut leaves or between
nuo bends argent.
1797 it still belonged to the bishopric.*07 Moreton
was held in frankalmoign of the king- in chief.208
John Buncombe held a capital messuage in Moreton
in the i6th century.209 It passed into the hands of
John Saunders of Long Marston, Hertfordshire, who
sold it to Richard Saunders.*'0 The latter died in
1 60 1, leaving a son John as his heir,*11 from whom
Robert Waller bought two messuages, a garden, an
orchard, and 90 acres of land in Moreton and
Dinton.*1' Edmund Waller
was his son and heir, but was
a minor at the time of his
father's death in 1617.*" His
descendant, Edmund Waller,
held Moreton under the Bishop
of Winchester in 1 797,"' and
the Wallers still own Moreton
at the present day.'14 In 1 606
Sir Thomas Lee died seised
of a farm called Moreton
Farm in Dinton, which had
previously been held by Ed-
mund Waller.'16 How Sir
Thomas had obtained this farm does not appear, nor
the date of its recovery by the Wallers. Moreton is,
however, best known as the first place of residence of
the Lees in Buckinghamshire. Thomas and Ralph
Lee held lands in Moreton, which they granted on
lease to Francis Lee for twenty-six years.117 Thomas.
Lee, the son of the lessee, held the remainder of this
lease at the time of his death in I572."8 He left in
his will the house in which he lived at Moreton to his
wife, together with all lands belonging to it and other
tenements there.*13 The Lees had probably settled
there in the 1 5th century, a brass to William Lee,
of Dinton, who died in 1485, still existing in the
church.
The family of Compton held land under the
Bishop of Winchester in the 1 5th century. There
is a brass in Dinton Church commemorating mem-
bers of the family, and bearing the date 1424, and
John Compton held land in Moreton in 1407.*"*
Sir Ralph Verney (jun.) died seised of COMP-
TON'S M4NOR in 1525 and it formed part of the
jointure of his wife Elizabeth.**1 His son and heir
Ralph succeeded him.*** William Serjeant, however,
held this manor at the beginning of the 1 7th century.***
Compton's Piece and Compton's Lane are mentioned
in 1 7 14,'*' and Compton's Farm is mentioned in the
early part of the I gth century.**4
The tenure by which the Comptons held their
land does not appear. Sir Ralph Verney, however,
held the manor of the Bishop of Winchester,**6 and
188 Assize R. 56, m. l8d.
187 Coram Rege R. zo ; CaL of Chart.
ii, 71.
188 FeuJ. JjJ^ \t g^.
189 Cf. Nether Upton.
190 Cal. Pat. 1461-7, p. 367.
181 Ibid. 1467-77, p. 309.
192 De Banco R. Mich. 3 Hen. VII,
m. 501.
198 See Owlswick in Monks Risborough;
Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccclxrvii, no. 96.
194 Feet of F. Bucks. East. 1 9 Jas. I.
195 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), cccxliii,
no. 142.
196 From inf. given by Lient.-Col.
Goodall. W Ibid.
198 Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 25.
199 ibid. a» Ibid.
«" V.C.H. Bucks, i, 233*
•» Testa de Nevitt (Rec. Com.), 246.
*» Feud. Aids, i, 92.
«x Eccl. Com. Ct. R. Ref. no. 155657!
(3), bdle. 85, no. I.
905 Acts of P.O. 1550-2, p. 359.
208 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), cccxliii,
no. 142.
W Thos. Langley, Hist, of the Hund. of
Desborough, 435.
908 Feud. Aids, i, 92.
909 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccbcx, no.
129.
NO Ibid.
«" Ibid.
919 Ibid, ccczxxix, no. 136.
278
«" Ibid.
"" Langley, Hitt. of the Hund. of Dei-
borough.
n" From inf. given by Lieut.-Col.
Goodall.
918 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccccxxxiv,
no. 77.
^Ibid. clx, no. 15.
•" Ibid. n> Ibid.
"» Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. g Hen. IV.
921 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), xliv, no. 91.
923 Ibid.
498 Ibid, cccxliii, no. 142.
924 Exch. Dep. by Com. Mich. I Geo. I,
no. 2;.
995 Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii.
288 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), xliv, no. 91
DINTON CHURCH : SOUTH DOORWAY OF NAVE
CUDDINCTON I TVRINGHAM HofSE
STONE HUNDRED
William Serjeant held it of the bishop as of his manor
of Moreton by fealty and a yearly rent of 1 6i.at
The church of ST. PETER and ST.
CHURCH PAUL consist* of a chancel 39 ft. by 1 7 ft.
8 in.;anave 56 ft. 9 in. by 23 ft. i J in.;a
south aisle 1 4 ft. 3 in. wide with south porch, and
a western tower 1 5 ft. 2 in. by 1 2 ft. 2 in. The
church seems to have been almost entirely rebuilt in the
i 3th century, but the walling above the south arcade
is probably older than the arcade, and at the east end
a shallow pilaster buttress shows in the east wall of the
south aisle, which looks like 12th-century work. The
south doorway is also of this date, and was doubtless
removed to its present position from the wall of an
aUlelcss nave.
In the first half of the I3th century the nave was
brought to its present plan by the rebuilding of its
north wall, perhaps a little outside the line of the
former north wall, and the addition of the south aisle
and its arcade. The present chancel arch was built
about the same time, and the chancel was rebuilt as it
now appears, except in the matter of length. This
has been increased by some feet in modern times.
In the north wall of the nave pilasters were set to
take the ends of the roof timbers, corresponding with
the spacing of the south arcade, but all the windows
of this date have been replaced by later work. At
some time in the i.fth century four buttresses were
built to support this wall, spaced symmetrically on the
outer elevation, without regard to the pilasters within,
and in the i£th century three large square-headed
windows were inserted, also set with regard to the
outside elevation, as far as the internal pilasters allowed.
The tower is of the I 5th century, the 1 3th-century west
door of the nave being removed to serve in the west
wall of the tower, and the south porch is also of the
i jth century. The church is covered externally by an
almost complete coat of rough-cast, the only part not
so treated, the chancel, having been largely re-pointed
and re-faced in modern times. The church was
'restored' by Street in 1868.
The east windows of the chancel, three lancets, are
entirely modern. There are three lancets also in the
north and south walls, which though re-tooled are in the
main old. The south doorway, between the first and
second lancets, is also in part old, and now blocked
with masonry. At the east end of the north wall is a
square locker rebated for a door, and in the same posi-
tion on the south a much-scraped and restored piscina
of 1 3 th-ccntury date with a trefoiled head and label.
At the west end of the south wall is the opening of a
squint which passes through the south respond of the
chancel arch, giving a view of the former position of
the high altar from the south aisle.
The chancel arch appears to be of the same build
as the nave arcade, and is of three plain chamfered
orders set centrally with both nave and chancel. The
responds are semi-octagonal with moulded capitals and
bases, the abaci being continued as a string across the
west face of the wall, and ranging with those of the
south arcade. The pilasters in the north wall are semi-
octagonal and very slender in form, with small moulded
capitals, which are probably 15 th-ccntury additions to
take the feet of the wall brackets of the principals, a
purpose they continue to fulfil in the case of the modern
roof. The south arcade is of five bays with octagonal
1 Chin. In ). f.m (Ser. a), cccxliii, no. 141.
DINTON
columns having moulded capitals and bases ; the arches
are of two chamfered orders struck from a point
well below the springing line. All the north windows
are square-headed, the first from the east being of two
trefoiled lights under a square head; it is of the same
section as the others in the wall, though its tracer}- has
a somewhat earlier character. The others are three
in number,with ogee cinqucfoiled lights under a square
head with small quatrefoils in the spandrels. Above the
crowns of the three eastern bays of the south arcade are
i;th-century clearstory openings with quatrefoil heads
in a square frame, the wall above the arcade being set
out on a chamfered string on account of the irregularity
of the old wall face below.
The east window of the south aisle is of three
trefoiled lights, with tracery of I 5 th-ccntury detail, and
almost entirely modern. At the east end of the south
wall is a piscina with a hollow-chamfered two-centred
head and an old drain, and above it a much restored
three-light i 5th-century window with modern tracer)'.
The south door, nearly opposite the middle bay of the
south aisle, is of 12th-century date, c. 1 140—50, a very
fine specimen, with a semicircular arch of two orders
with zigzag ornament, a continuous label with triple
billet ornament, spirally fluted shafts to the inner order,
and a carved tympanum and lintel. The capital of
the western shaft is scalloped, and that of the eastern
has a bird with outspread wings.
On the tympanum is a conventional tree between
two monsters, and on the lintel below are St. Michael
and the Dragon, the underside of the lintel and the
upper border of the tympanum having bands of inter-
lacing ornament. On the lower part of the tympa-
num and the upper edge of the lintel is the inscription
>J< PREMIA PRO MERITIS SI O.(u)lS DESP(ER) ET HABENDA
AUDIAT HIC PREC(E)PTA SIBI QVE SI(N)T RETINENDA )J(
The jambs of the inner order appear to have been
altered, and have stops of modern classical character
immediately below the lintel.
West of the door is a three-light i 5 th-ccntury win-
dow of the same design as that on the east of the door,
and, like it, much restored. The west window, of
two lights with tracery of 15th-century design, is
almost completely modern, the sill and a few stones in
the jambs alone being old. The porch has a good
15th-century roof with moulded timbers resting on
four stone carved corbels ; the inner tie-beam being
cut away to show the details of the inner door-
way.
The tower is of three stages, with an embattled
parapet and belfry windows of two trefoiled lights with
a quatrefoil in the head. The tower arch is two
centred, of three chamfered orders, dying out at the
springing. The west window of the ground stage is of
I 5th-century date, with three cinqucfoiled lights and
tracery over in a four-centred head. The west door
has a two-centred head of three deeply-moulded orders
and double-shafted jambs, the inner order being con-
tinuous. The label has mask drips, and the doorway
is a fine piece of 1 3th-century detail.
The font has a large cup-shaped bowl on a wide
circular moulded base, and much resembles in outline
a type of late 12th-century font common in the neigh-
bourhood. The base appears to be of that date, but
the details of the bowl look like 14th-century work,
and it is possible that it is in reality a 1 2th-century
font rccut. It has a scroll moulding on the lip, and
279
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
below it a band of quatrefoiled circles, the lower part
of the bowl being fluted, with trefoiled ogee heads to
the flutes.
The roofs, except that of the porch, are modern, those
of the nave and aisle being of low pitch and covered
with lead, while that of the chancel is of steep pitch and
tiled. The seating is also modern, but there is a fairly
good i yth-century pulpit, and in the vestry, at the west
end of the aisle, is a table with large carved baluster
legs dated 1606, and an inscription cut on the top,
FRANCIS HUNTTS GEVEN BY THE YOUTH OF UPTON
the initials, presumably, of the donors being cut on the
front of the frame. There is also a chest with linen
panels and styles carved with detail of c. 1540, but
a lid of I yth-century date, and under the tower a
cupboard made up of similar materials. At the north-
east of the nave is a tablet to Simon Mayne of Dinton,
1617, who married Collubery, the daughter of Richard
Lovelace of Hurley, Berkshire, and had one son and one
daughter. In the tower is a small wall monument to
Richard Ingoldsby, 1703, his wife Mary (Colmore),
seven sons and seven daughters. In the same place is
a large monument of black and white marble with Ionic
columns carrying an arched pediment, commemorating
Richard Serjeant, 1661, and his two wives Anne (In-
goldsby) and Jane (Harrington) ; on the plinth is an
inscription to the last with blanks left for the age and
date of death. Above are the arms : Gules a bend
wavy argent between two dolphins or impaling Sable
fretty argent, which are the arms of his second wife.
In the floor at the west end of the south aisle are the
following brasses : John Compton, 1424, and his wife
Margery (Hurley), with four sons and five daughters ;
William Lee of Moreton in the parish of Dinton, 1486,
and Alice his wife ; John Lee of Moreton, 1500 (in-
scription plate only) ; Francis Lee, 1558, and Elizabeth
his wife ; Elinor, wife of Sir Thomas Lee of More-
ton, who had twenty- four children and died 1633 ;
Simon Mayne, 1617, and Collubery his wife, 1628
(see above) ; Thomas Grenewey, 1538, and his wife
Elizabeth, 1538 ; and their son and heir Richard
Grenewey, 1551, and his wife Joan (Bulney). On
the last named are the arms of Grenewey : Gules a
fesse and a chief or with three martlets vert in the
chief. In the chancel are some 18th-century monu-
ments to the Vanhattem family. Under the tower
hangs a funeral helm of 16th-century type. In the
south-east window of the south aisle is a shield of
old glass bearing Barry .... in chief three griffins'
heads.
There are six bells ; the treble, second and third of
1656, the fourth by Richard Chandler, 1682, the fifth
of 1658, and the tenor of 1892. The bells of
1656-8 are from the Knights' foundry at Reading.
The church plate is very handsome, and consists of
a large covered cup of Elizabethan design bearing the
date letter for 1569 ; a salver inscribed as the gift of
Thomas Ingoldsby in 1721 and hall-marked for that
year ; and two large flagons, the gift of Sir John Van-
hattem in 1772, hall-marked for 1771.
The first book of the registers contains all entries
between 1562 and 1648; the second all between
1653 and 1742, and a third book contains burials in
woollen from 1689 to 1737. After 1742 there is a
gap, baptisms and burials being continued in one book
from 1773 to 1812, while two books contain the
marriage entries between 1754 an(^ '7^8, and 1768
and 1812.
The church of Dinton wa»
ADVOWSON granted by Agnes de Munchesney
to the convent of Godstow, Oxford-
shire, in the reign of Henry II. m
The rectory was impropriated and the vicarage
ordained by the time of Bishop Hugh of Wells.'"
After the dissolution of the convent, Henry VIII
in 1545 granted the rectory and church with the
advowson of the vicarage to Robert Brown, Christo-
pher Edmesdes, and William Windlow."30 They
enfeofFed Robert and John Doyley,'31 the former of
whom sold the rectory and advowson in 1 5 5 6 to
Richard Shrimpton.*J> From Shrimpton they passed
to John Duncombe,*33 who together with his son
Edward granted the rectory,*" and apparently the
advowson also, to Elizabeth, the wife of Richard
Saunders, for life, with remainder to Richard and
to his son John.135
After the death of her first husband Elizabeth
married Sir — Hoddesdon,*36 and John Saunders-
seems to have entered into possession of the rectory
and advowson.*37 The latter he granted separately in
1623, with the consent of his mother, to William
Carter of OfHey, Hertfordshire.238 John died in the
same year, leaving an only daughter Elizabeth, aged
seven at the time of her father's death.*39 She
probably married Sir Walter Pye,"° and they were
in possession of the advowson of the church of
Dinton in 1639."' Elizabeth died seised of the
rectory and advowson, which were inherited by her
son Walter.10
He sold the advowson of the vicarage about
1650 to Simon Mayne the regicide,*43 so that after
the Restoration it was forfeited to the Crown. It
was not alienated,"1 and the patronage of the vicarage
of Dinton is in the hands of the Lord Chancellor at
the present day.
The rectory was not sold by Sir Walter Pye with
the advowson, but he conveyed it to John Harrington
and Richard Serjeant (jun.) in 1655.*"
The warrant for a grant of the rectory and tithes
of Dinton was made out in 1662 to the Bishops of
London and Winchester and others, to be held in
trust for the maintenance of a minister.*10 The
rectory was then said to have come to the Crown by
the forfeiture of the lands of Simon Mayne ; *4' but
this presumably was a mistake, since he does not
seem ever to have bought the rectory. In 1705
Winwood Serjeant and his wife Martha held the
228 Cart. Antiq. G.G. 6.
*» V.C.H. Bucks, i, 284, n. i.
»o Pat. 37 Hen. VIII, pt. 13.
281 Com. Pleas D. Enr. East. 20 Eliz.
m. 29.
282 Ibid. ; Feet of F.
3 & 4 Phil, and Maty.
288 Ibid. East 13 Eliz.
294 Ibid. 42 Eliz.
Bucks. Mich.
385 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), cclxx, no.
129.
885 Ibid, cccxliii, no. 142.
ffl7 Ibid. ass Ibid.
289 Ibid, cccci, no. 100.
240 There is considerable confusion as
to the identity of the wife of Sir Walter
Pye ; cf. Lipscomb, /ft/, of Bucks, i, 382 ;
ii, 151.
411 Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. 15 Chas. I.
280
242 Chan. Inq. p.m. Misc. dxxxvi,
16 (ha-. I, pt. 31, no. 12.
248 Treas. Bks. cccxlviii, no. 41.
244 P.R.O. lost. Bks. 1660, 1662, 1684,
1692. In 1717 Hatch Moody, gent.,
presented, but in 1773 the Crown again
presented.
245 Feet of F. Bucks. East. 1655.
246 Cal. S.P. Dam. 1662-3, P- 489-
»7 Ibid.
STONE HUNDRED
HADDENHAM
rectory, hence his family had presumably owned it
without interruption since its purchase in 1655.**
There is a Baptist chapel at Ford in this parish,
built in 1716, with a mission chapel attached to it
at Dinton.
Dame Elizabeth Hoddesden, who
CHARITIES died II March 1637, by will left
£15, the interest to be given yearly
on the day of her death to ten or twelve poor old
persons by the direction of the minister and church-
wardens. The principal sum appears to have been
received and spent by the parish, but no mm
by way of interest has been distributed for many
years.
Mrs. Matilda Phelps by will, proved in 1867, left
£100 to be invested and income applied by the
vicar of Dinton, and the owner of Dinton Hall, in the
distribution of coals to poor and aged widows and
spinsters. The legacy is represented by £103 l8/. <)J.
India 3 per cent, stock with the official trustees.
The dividend, amounting to £3 21. \<L, was in
1905-6 distributed in coal to eight widows and
two spinsters.
In 1876 Miss Eliza Goodall by will left £200
consols (with the official trustees), the dividends to
be applied annually in the month of January for the
benefit of all or such of the poor as should be then
residing in the cottages known as the ' Church
Houses,' and in such shares as the owner of the
Dinton Hall estate should think well. By a scheme
of the Charity Commissioners, 1901, it was provided
that so long as there should be no inmates of the
Church Houses the income should be applied for the
benefit of deserving and necessitous persons in such
way as might be considered most conducive to the
formation of provident habits. In 1906 coal, articles
of clothing, and money were distributed to twenty
recipients.
Mrs. Sarah Maria Clotilda Roper by will 1866,
proved in 1 88 1, among other charitable legacies,
bequeathed specific sums and share of residue for
the benefit of this parish. The estate was administered
in the Chancery Division of the High Court, and in
the result £89 consols (with the official trustees) and
£450 \-]s. \d. consols (in court) were assigned for
the benefit of the organist ; £89 1 5/. 6J. consols
(with the official trustees) for the poor ; £558 3/. $d.
consols (in court) for the poor schools; andj£co7 l"Ji. $J.
consols (in court) for the benefit of the Dinton school-
house. The amount applicable for educational pur-
poses, about £26 a year, is received by the national
schools.
HADDENHAM
Nedreham (xi cent.); Hedrehau (xi cent); Heden-
ham (xiii cent.).
The parish of Haddenham lies in the Vale of
Aylesbury towards its western limit. Its boundaries
are formed on all sides, except the east, by the River
Thame and its tributaries, the Dad Brook on the
north, the Ford Brook on the south, and the Thame
on the west. There are two mineral springs in the
parish, one at Dadbrook and the other at Manor
Farm. The parish is fairly level, lying at an altitude
jf between 250 ft. and 300 ft. above the Ordnance
datum ; there is little timber, and the land is in
parts bleak and exposed. The subsoil is partly gault
and partly Portland beds.1 There are 1,596^ acres of
arable land and 1,214$ acres of permanent pasture.'
Besides agriculture, the inhabitants are occupied in
duck and poultry breeding, and at the Haddenham
brick works. Two branches of the road from Thame
to Aylesbury pass through the parish, the village of
Haddenham lying across the line of the southern
branch. There is a station on the Gre.it Central
Railway a short distance from the village, and a
branch of the Great Western Railway passes through
the parish.
The village is large and straggling, having at its
south end, known as Church End, a large green with
a pond, and the church on the south side of the
green. There are a few good Georgian houses and
many thatched cottages. The larger houses in the
parish, Scotsgrove House, Grenville Manor House,
and the Hall are of no architectural interest. At the
north-east angle of the churchyard is an old house,
which has in its ground-floor rooms some early 17th-
century panelling, and the upper story, which partly
overhangs, was originally one large room with an open
roof. It may have been the church house. Stud
partitions have, however, been inserted in the first
floor dividing it up into several bedrooms, and the
house has, especially to the south, been greatly
modernized.
In the Domesday Survey the manor
MANORS of HADDENHAM. appears under the
name of ' Nedreham,' and Cuddington
was also probably included in it.1
It had been held in the time of King Edward by
Earl Tostig, but William the Conqueror had given it
to Archbishop Lanfranc. It was assessed at 40 hides
and valued at .£40, and there were said to be eight
days' hay (per viii" diet fenum) for the ' ferm ' of the
archbishop.4
William II gave the manor, at Lanfranc's request,'
to the church of St. Andrew, Rochester, the grant
being confirmed by the archbishop.* On the latter's
death in 1099 a dispute arose between the king and
Gundulf, Bishop of Rochester, concerning Hadden-
ham, the king demanding that £100 should be paid
before the grant was confirmed, and the bishop pro-
testing that he did not even possess so large a sum.7
It was finally agreed that Gundulf should, at his own
cost, fortify the enceinte of Rochester Castle with a
stone wall,' in return for which William gave the
manor to Rochester Cathedral.' Gundulf introduced
the rule of St. Benedict at Rochester,10 and Hadden-
ham appears amongst the lands of the reformed
*** Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. ] Anne.
> V.C.H. Bmckt. i, Geological Map.
' Information from Bd. of Agric.
. Bttki. i,»3i«.
« Ibid.
• Cott. MS. Dom. x, fol. 105.
• Ibid. 107 j Rymer, FeoJtra (Sjrlla-
bu.),,.
28l
1 Campb. Chart, vii, I } r.C.H. Bttki,
i, an.
• Wharton, Anglia Sacra, i, 337.
• Campb. Chart, vii, i.
10 Uugdalr, Mm. i, 155.
36
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
monastery, being mentioned in confirmatory grants
by Archbishops Anselm " and Theodore.11
Haddenham remained in the hands of the Prior
and Convent of Rochester, without intermission, until
the Dissolution, except for a short period early in the
reign of Edward III, when, owing to the deposition of
John, then Prior of Rochester, the escheator of Buck-
inghamshire took the manor into the king's hand.15
In December 1333, he was
ordered not to intermeddle
further with the manor, but
apparently the command was
not obeyed, for in March
1334 a further order was sent
that he should 'amove the
King's hand without delay,'
and restore the issues of the
manor to the Prior of Roches-
ter. It was stated at the same
time that the manor had never
been out of the control of
the monastery since the grant of William II." In
May 1539, the Prior of St. Andrew's, Rochester,
obtained a licence to alienate the manor to Sir
Edward North,15 who apparently exchanged for it
some lands in Suffolk and Cambridgeshire of the
yearly value of £^-O.w
The king confirmed this exchange, but three years
ROCHESTER PRIORY.
Argent a taltire gules.
later, in 1543, he obtained possession of the manor
from Sir Edward North and his wife Alice.17 The
manor was from time to time leased out by the Crown
until the reign of James I.18 A Mr. Anstell is the first
lessee mentioned, but in 1583 he had been succeeded
by Richard Beake, who had married Colluberry Love-
lace.19 Another Richard Beake,™ his son, held the
remainder of his lease, but in
1618 it was said to be de-
fective, and a new lease for
forty years of the mansion
house and the site of the
manor was made.*1
James, however, granted the
manor to Henry Prince of
Wales in 1611." On the
death of the prince it was sold
to Francis Poulton and Tho-
mas Plumpstead, who held the
manor, site and mansion house,
lands, rents, &c., at a fee-
farm rent of £115 15^. \oJ.13
This rent was granted to Prince
HENRY, Prince of
Wales. FRANCE and
ENGLAND quartered "with
SCOTLAND and IRELAND,
•with the difference of a
label argent.
Charles in 1617 for the term of ninety-nine years."
Poulton in 1616" sold the manor to Sir John
Dormer and John Wakeman. In 1625 Sir Robert
Spiller held it and settled it on his son Sir Henry."
The latter made a settlement of three manors in
HADDENHAM CHURCH FROM THE SOUTH-EAST
35-
11 Add. MS. 29437, fol. 25.
12 Stowe MS. 940, fol. 108.
18 Col. Close, 1333-7, p. 167.
14 Ibid. 206.
"Pat. 31 Hen. VIII, pt. I, m.
*' Feet of F. Bucks. East. 34 Hen.
VIII.
18 Exch. Dep. by Com. Mich. 2; & 26
Eliz.no. 29; Cal. S.P. Dam. 1611-18,
p. 596.
19 E*ch. Dep. by Com. HiL 37 Eliz.
16 L. and P. Hen. VIII, jciv (i), 482 no. 12 ; ibid. Mich. 25 & 26 Eliz. no. 29.
'1056).
Cal. S.P. Don. 1611-28, p. 596.
282
21 Pat. 1 6 Jas, I, 6.
22 Ibid. 8 Jas. I, pt. 41, no. 2.
25 Ibid. 12 Jas. I, pt. 2, no. 2, m. 24.
24 Ibid. 14 Jas. I, pt. 20 ; Orig. R. 14
Jas. I, no. 4, roll 126.
25 Feet of F. Div. Cos. Mich. 13 Jas. I.
26 Recov. R. Hil. i Chas. I; Close, 10
Chas. I, pt. 27, m. 15.
STONE HUNDRED
1642," after his death on another Henry Spiller,
probably hit eldest son, and then in tail male on the
ten sons of Henry Spiller, with various other re-
mainders and a power of revocation in the case of the
manor of Haddenham. In 1 645, however, Sir Henry
Spiller, being imprisoned at Gloucester by the Par-
liamentarians, was approached by the attorney of the
Earl of Pembroke, who proposed a marriage between
the earl's son James Herbert and Jane, the grand-
daughter of Sir Henry." Sir Henry obtained leave
to go to London to discuss the matter, but could
come to no satisfactory arrangement with the earl
and would not consent to the marriage. Hence he
was sent to the Tower, and while there the marriage
took place without his consent.
It is not clear what settlements were finally made,
but when Sir Henry Spiller died in 1 649," James
Herbert and his wife entered on the manors and
kept them, in spite of the persistent efforts of Henry
Spiller to recover possession under the settlement of
1642, efforts that were still continued in 1690.*°
The Herberts, however, had, in 1675, conveyed the
manor to Peregrine Bertie " and Charles Bertie, who
in the same year conveyed it to Lord Danby, the
high treasurer, and his son and heir, Edward
Osborne.™ It remained in their hands until 1709,
when it was conveyed to John Whishaw together
with the manor of Kingsey." Haddenham passed
from John Whishaw to Thomas Falkner in 1737,**
but in 1751 it appears to have been held by Sir
Philip Wenman, bart., Vis-
count Wenman in Ireland."
His daughter and heiress,
Sophia, married William Hum-
phrey Wykeham, of Swaldiffe
(co. Oion.), in 1768." She
was succeeded by her son,
William Richard Wykeham,
whose lands passed to his
daughter and heiress Sophia,
created Baroness Wenman in
1834. She died unmarried,
and the family estates passed
to her cousins. The eldest,
Philip Wykeham, died un-
married, and by his will his
estates passed to his eldest
nephew, Mr. Wenman Aubrey Wykeham-Musgrave,
of Thame Park," the present lord of the manor of
Haddenham.
In the 1 3th century it was claimed that Hadden-
ham had of old belonged to the king's manor of Brill,
and so formed part of the ancient demesne of the
Crown." In the technical sense the claim does not
appear to be tenable since Lanfranc held Haddenham
at the time of the Domesday Survey, but there may
have been some connexion between the two manors
under the Saxon kings. In the time of Edward the
WYKERAtl-MutOtAVX.
Azure six ringt or and a
quarur argent for Mut-
GRAVE, quartered 'with
argent HIM ckeveront
tattle between three rout
gulet for WYIIKAM.
HADDENHAM
Confessor the king held Brill * and Earl Tostig, the
brother of Harold, held Haddenham."
In 1254 the township of Haddenham was reckoned
as 40 hides and assessed at .£40," being accounted
of the same size and of the same value as at the time
of the Domesday Survey.41 In the taxation of 1341
it was assessed at 50 marks, but it was able to pay
only 46 J marks, as owing to the dry ness of the
season the hay crop was unusually small."
In 1295 the Prior of Rochester received a grant of
a weekly market, and of a yearly fair to be held on
the eve, day, and morrow of the Assumption of the
Blessed Virgin Mary, and of free warren in both
Haddenham and Cuddington.44 At the dissolution
of the monasteries the manor and rectory of Hadden-
ham were valued at £92. u
In 1210-12 Richard de Haddenham held land of
the bishop,4* which was afterwards apparently known
as GRENflLLE'S M4NOR ; some years later it was
in the hands of Geoffrey son of Richard, who may
be identified with Richard de Haddenham.47 Various
members of the same family are mentioned in docu-
ments relating to Haddenham. A John de Hadden-
ham ** was murdered about 1274. John, son of
William de Haddenham, acquired land in the parish
in 1286," and was the bishop's tenant of his family
lands in 1302-3.**
Geoffrey de Haddenham, the son of John de
Haddenham, is mentioned in 1316," but he had
died before 1337, leaving apparently only daughter)
to succeed to his lands." His widow Christina held
part of these in dower in 1337, the reversion to her
lands being the right of Joan, the widow of Richard
de Grcnville, of Wotton." His wife is said to have
been a daughter of Lord Zouche of Harringworth, but
if so it does not appear what right she could have in
this land.44
In 1346 John Sergeant, John Marshall, and Agnes
and Nicholaa Grcnville held the lands that once had
been held by John, son of William [de Hadden-
ham].4'
The descent of the Grenville lands only, however,
can be traced, and it does not
appear whose daughters Agnes
and Nicholaa were.
Joan, the widow of Richard
de Grenville, in 1337 held
the reversion of 1 3 messuages,
2 tofts, 339 acres of land,
30 acres of meadow, and
30;. rent in Haddenham, and
released her right in them to
William de Grenville." He
and his wife Margaret ob-
tained a quitclaim from Ralph
Cras of White Waltham and
BS
GRINTILLE. Vert a
enn argent w/'M fvt
rounJell guilt thereon.
his wife of tenements in Haddenham in 1347,
but he had died before 1351."
W Hitt. MSS. Com. Kef. xiii, App. T,
127.
« Ibid. "Ibid. » Ibid.
» Feet of F. Div. Cot. Hil. 27 & 28
Chat. II.
" Recov. R. Hil. 26 Chat. II.
" Ibid. Eatt. 8 Anne, rot. 77.
M Ibid. 10 Ceo. II, rot. 11.
" Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. 24 & 25
Ceo. II.
M Burke, Landed Gentry, 1906.
*> Ibid.
" Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31, 36.
» V.C.H. Butkt. i, 231*.
40 Ibid. 233*.
« Hund. R. (Rec. Com.}, i, ji.
4« f.C.H. Buekt. i, 232*.
41 ha. No*. (Rec. Com.), 328.
44 Chart. R. 33 Edw. I, 88, m. I, no.
7 ; Cat. Rot. Chart. (Rec. Com.), 1 26.
** Dugdale, Man. i, 188.
* Red Bk. of Exct. (Rolli Ser.), +74.
« Tata de Ntvill (Rec. Com.), 245,
162.
283
** Cal. Clue, 1272-9, p. 73.
" Feet of F. Ruck.. Eatt. 14 Edw. I.
** Feud. Aidt, i, 97.
" Feet of F. Bucki. Trin. 9 Edw. II.
" Ibid. Mich. 10 Edw. III.
» Ibid.
M Cullint, Pierage (ed Brydget), ii,
400-1.
•* Feud. Aidt, i, 122.
" Feet of F. Bucki. Mich. 10 Bdw. III.
W Ibid. Eait. 20 Edw. Ill
« Cal. Clou, 1349-54, P- 178.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
The Grenvilles held this land with apparently no
interruption until .the 1 6th century. In 1536
Edward Grenville died seised of tenements in Had-
denham, leaving Edward, then a boy of eleven, as his
heir.59 The latter sold this land in 1 548 to William
Wright, of Winchester,60 and ten years later it was
again sold to Thomas Rose of Waddesdon and John
Goodwin of Upper Winchendon.61 On 10 Decem-
ber 1569 it was conveyed to Robert Rose, John Ross,
and Robert Morse jointly,6' but Robert Rose seems
afterwards to have obtained possession of the whole.
The Grenvilles' land by this time was known as
' Grenville's Manor.' These purchases seem to have
been confirmed to Robert Rose in I57I,63 when a
quit-claim was obtained from Edward Grenville,
Richard Grenville and his wife Mary, and William
Wright and his wife Elizabeth. Robert Rose, by his
will dated 1598, left the manor to his son Edward,64
and died in 1606-7.^
The descendants of Robert Rose have owned the
manor since 1569. It seems to have descended to
Thomas Rose, who died in
1715, and was buried at Had-
denham. Some time after this
date the manor passed to an-
other branch of the same
family, to which the present
owners of Grenville's Manor
belong. This family resided
for more than 200 years at
another house in the village.66
Robert Rose, the father of
the present owner, Joseph Rose,
came into possession of Gren-
ville's Manor on attaining his
majority in 1826."
The Haddenhams held their land of the Bishop
of Rochester by military service, as three-fourths of a
knight's fee.68 Robert Rose at the time of his death
in 1606-7 held one messuage and 89 acres of land,69
presumably Grenville's Manor, of the king as of his
manor of Haddenham in free socage by fealty.70
Appurtenant to the manor is the right to fish,
hawk, or fowl throughout the whole parish of Had-
denham." Previous to the inclosure of the common
fields of the parish the owners of Grenville's Manor
paid a dog-rose yearly for this right. It was placed
on the front entrance gate of the manor place each
Midsummer Day.7'
SIGGESTROP appears to have been a hamlet or
farm in Haddenham, held of the Bishop of Rochester.
In 1210 Mathias at Biggestrope held this land in
Haddenham.73 He seems to have died shortly after
this, since his land, early in the reign of Henry III,
was held by Adam de Spaldington, probably holding
in wardship.74 Geoffrey de Biggestrope was the
tenant in I 302," and the same name again occurs in
1 346,™ but after that date this land is not mentioned
again in any document.
A freehold farm called Bigstrup Farm, in the parish
Ros* of Waddesdon.
Azure a cheveron ermine
between three •water-
budgets argent.
of Haddenham, was advertised for sale by public
auction in 1 797. It appears to have then been in
the possession of the owner of the manor of Upton,
in the parish of Dinton,77 and a farm in the parish
still bears the same name. The land was held in 1210
for the service due from a fourth part of a knight's
fee,78 but in the 1 4th century the service had been
considerably reduced.79
Two mills are mentioned in the Domesday Survey,
and were worth zo/.80
A water-mill in Haddenham was granted for forty
years to Richard Beake by James I.81
The church of OUR LADY consists
CHURCH of a chancel i6ft. loin, by 35ft., with
north chapel 17 ft. 6 in. by 14 ft. 2 in.,
and small south vestry ; a nave 20 ft. by 58 ft.; north
and south aisles I o ft. 6 in. wide ; north porch, and
west tower 1 2 ft. 6 in. square within the walls. There
is some evidence of an aisleless nave earlier than the
end of the 1 2th century, but the general character
of the church is of later date, and apparently due to
a complete rebuilding begun in the opening years of
the 1 3th century, and carried on slowly, the tower
being the latest part of the work, and belonging to
the latter part of the century. The chancel arch has
half-round responds with capitals of very late Roman-
esque detail, th.it on the south having small scallops,
c. 1 200, and the other being perhaps a clumsy later
copy of it. Its bell sets back from the face of the
respond, and the carving on it may be of very much later
date. The responds have been thrust outwards, but
the pointed arch, of two chamfered orders, shows no
signs of dislocation, and is either a rebuilding or a
successor of the original arch.
The aisles were probably rebuilt and widened in
the 1 4th century ; and the north porch is of the
same date. In the ijth century the north chapel
and the western bays of both aisles were rebuilt, and
the rood-stair at the east end of the north aisle is also
of this time. The original south chapel has dis-
appeared, but parts of its east wall exist in that of
the vestry now on its site.
The proportions of the church are very good, both
nave and chancel being fine and lofty ; the latter has
no buttresses, and its eastern angles, quoined with large
stones, give a great effect of height.
The walls of the chancel have been lately repointed
on the outside, but within retain their old plastering
in a very perfect condition, with a masonry pattern
in red lines, which has been treated to represent
courses of Purbeck marble, or something of the kind,
round the windows. Little of this particular detail
remains, as the dressings of the windows have been
unfortunately cleared of the plaster with which they
were from the first covered.
In the east wall are three modern lancet windows,
with tall detached banded shafts on the inner face,
and in each of the side walls are two lancets, much
shorter and narrower. The heads of those on the
south are cut out of unusually large single stones,
59 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), xlix, no, 52.
60 From information kindly given by
Mr. Walter Rose of Grenville's Manor.
61 Ibid. « Ibid.
« Feet of F. Bucks. Hil. 13 Eliz.
64 From information given by Mr.
Walter Rose.
65 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Sen 2), ccxcviii,
no. 78.
** From information given by Mr.
Walter Rose. V Ibid.
« Red Bk. of Exch. (Rolls Ser.), 474 ;
Testa de Ne-uill (Rec. Com.), 245, 262.
69 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccciv,
no. 87.
7° Ibid, ccxcviii, no. 78.
71 From information given by Mr.
Walter Rose. 1* Ibid.
284
" Red Bk. ofExcb. (Rolls Ser.), 674.
1* Testa de Ne-uill (Rec. Com.), 245.
?5 Feud. Aids, \, 27.
7« Ibid, i, 122.
77 Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii, 161.
7» RedBk. ofExcb. (Rolls Ser.), 474.
79 Feud. Aids, i, 97, 122.
80 y.C.H. Bucks, i, 232*.
81 Pat. 1 6 Jas. I, pt, 6.
STONE HUNDRED
which make a permanent centnng for the relieving
arches, but the north windows are treated in a more
ordinary manner. At the north-west and south-west
of the chancel pointed arches of two chamfered
orders with half-round responds and plainly-moulded
capitals open to the north chapel and south vestry ;
the roll string, which runs round the chancel below
the window-sills, is level with the capitals of the
arches. In the east wall, behind the altar, is a large
rectangular recess which doubtless served as a place to
keep some of the church possessions, and on either
side of the altar are smaller recesses, with arched
heads, that to the south having at the back a wooden
beam, and in it a sinking which may have served as
the base of a flue.
The piscina, at the south-east, has a trefoiled head,
and may be of the I 5th century.
The north chapel has an east window of three
cinqucfoiled lights with tracery, of i 5th-century date,
containing a good deal of contemporary glass, mostly
in jumbled fragments. The tracery lights are in
better condition, and have St. Bartholomew and St.
Matthew in the two middle lights, with St. John
Baptist and St. Paul on either side, and seraphs in
the outer lights. The canopies in the main lights
are in fairly perfect condition, but all the rest of the
centre light is filled with fragments, many of which
are inscribed with parts of the Apostles' Creed.
The north window is of the same character, but
of four lights, with a transom in the tracery above,
and at the north-west is a small four-centred doorway
with a square label and carved spandrels. In the
south wall is a very beautiful 13th-century piscina,
with a moulded trefoil arch and engaged shafts set in
a panel of diapered stonework surrounded by a
moulded string. Over the arch is a label enriched
with small dogtooth ornament, now unfortunately
much clogged with whitewash.
The south vestry is modern, but its east wall is
apparently on the line of that of the former south
chapel, and in its east window of 14th-century type
a few old stones are re-used. On the south is a modern
doorway, and the arch opening to the chancel is filled
with a i 5th-century screen, the upper panels of which
have open tracery with cusps ending in carved heads.
The sill of the screen is a re-used beam with church-
wardens' names and the date 1 709.
The nave is of four bays, the arcades having circu-
lar columns with moulded capitals and bases, and
clustered responds with three shafts. The bases all
show the characteristic hollow moulding, but the
capitals are of several different sections, and some have
been cut back and re-worked. The arches are pointed,
of two chamfered orders, and have a filleted label.
There is no clearstory and the ceiling is a plaster cove
of 18th-century date.
The north aisle is lit by three three-light windows.
The first two are of 1 4th-century date with trefoiled
heads and flowing tracery. Between these is the
north door, of late 14th-century date, the head and
jambs continuously moulded with a double ogee.
West of the second window is a square-headed 15th-
century window of three cinqucfoiled lights with
tracery over, while in the west wall is a small re-set
and restored 14th-century trefoil light. At the east
end of this aisle are the remains of the rood-stair,
with both upper and lower doorways. The north
porch is of late 14th-century date with an embattled
HADDENHAM
parapet, and has east and west windows of two tre-
foiled lights with a quatrefoil over.
The south aisle has at the south-east a much-re-
stored five-light 15th-century window, with a straight-
lined head, the tracery being quite modern. Beneath
it is a 15th-century piscina with a trefoiled head and
a stone shelf. West of this window is the south door,
of late 14th-century date with a continuous moulding
and an external label. The two remaining south win-
dows and the west window correspond to those in the
same positions in the north aisle.
The tower is an unusually fine specimen of its
period, and is of three stages with corner buttresses to
the ground stage and a stair in the south-west angle.
The tower arch is of three chamfered orders, the two
outer dying into the two square orders of the jambs,
whil: the inner is supported upon almost completely
detached round shafts with circular capitals. The west
door is of three continuous chamfered orders with a label,
and above it are three modern lancets within a shafted
I 3th-century recess with a moulded two-centred head.
There are narrow moulded lights in the second stage,
except on the east side, where the pitch of the original
roof rises to the base of the belfry stage. The belfry
stage is arcadcd on each face with five moulded arches
springing from circular shafts with capitals and bases.
The first, third, and fifth arches on each face are blind,
but the second and fourth have window openings filled
with luffer boards. Above is a line of corbels carry-
ing a plain parapet.
The roof of the chancel is modern and of the same
pitch and height as the old roof. That of the nave
is hidden by the coved ceiling already noted, and is of
lower pitch than the original roof. The roof of the
north chapel is of I ;th-century date with moulded
timbers and wall brackets carried by carved corbels.
The font stands close to the western pillar of the
south arcade, and is of late 1 2th-century date, with a
tapering circular bowl on a moulded base, resting on
a pentagonal block of stone. The bowl has a band
of foliage, in which is a dragon, round its upper part,
and has tall and narrow scalloped ornament below.
There is a considerable quantity of old woodwork
re-used, including some bench ends with fleur-de-lis
finials. On one of the latter is carved a plough and
the letter A, and on another a tun, from which springs
a small spray of foliage, and the letters W and R.
There are also some remains of 15th-century screens,
one length between the tower and the nave, and others
between the north aisle and chapel and between the
chancel and vestry. The lower panels are solid, and
the upper pierced with traceried heads of normal type.
The double door in the north porch bears on an upper
rail the initials G. W. and T. G. and the date 1637,
and has had an ingenious arrangement of weights and
pulleys to keep it closed
On the south wall of the chancel is a small marble
monument to John Marriott, 1677, ornamented with
wreaths and cherubs' heads and a cartouche bearing
the Marriott arms impaling Ermine six roundels. In
the north chapel is another w.ill monument to Rich-
ard Beake, 1627, with the Beakearms impaling Ermine
on a bend three cinque foils. Near this is preserved
a funeral helmet. In the same part of the church are
the remains of some brasses. One is the figure of a
priest wearing a long-sleeved cassock and fur almuce
with, beneath, the inscription : ' Hie jacet Thomas
Nassh quondl Vicari' de Haddcnam qui obiit xiii° Die
285
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Marcii Anno Dni M° cccc° xxviii0 Cujus aie ppiciet'
deus ame.' Another is also the figure of a priest of
early I Jth-century date, in mass vestments, wearing an
apparelled amice and albe and a fanon. Below is an
inscription belonging to another brass : ' Here lyeth
Gyls Woodbryge xv xx and ix and Elizabeth his wife
which the four day of August changyd ther lyffe.'
The tower contains a ring of eight bells cast by
J. Briant of Hertford in 1 809.
The church plate consists of a chalice of 1 706 in-
scribed with the churchwardens' names and the date
1707, a standing paten inscribed as the gift of John
Marriott in 1716, and a plated flagon and salver.
The first book of the registers contains baptisms and
marriages from 1653 to 1726 and burials 1653—78 ;
with a gap. The second contains baptisms and burials
1727-32; the third, baptisms 1762-96, and burials
1761—95 ; the fourth continues the baptisms and
burials to 1812, and the fifth and sixth are the mar-
riage registers 1754-91 and 1791-1812.
In the Domesday Survey the
ADVOWSON church was held of Archbishop Lan-
franc by Gilbert the priest, the large
glebe consisting of three hides of land, which were
sufficient for one plough.8* It was granted to the
Priory of St. Andrew Rochester in the charter of
William Rufus,83 and after Lanfranc's death the grant
was confirmed.84 It appears that Ernulf, Bishop of
Rochester (l 1 1 5—25), gave the church of Haddenham,
with its lands and tithes, to the priory for the main-
tenance of the lights in the church.85
The vicarage was ordained by Bishop Hugh of
Wells ( 1 209-3 5).81 The chapels of Cuddington and
Kingsev belonged to the church. A separate vicar
was appointed for Kingsey, the vicar of Hadden-
ham being responsible, however, for providing a chap-
lain at Cuddington.87 The rectory of Haddenham
was excepted in the grant of the manor made by
Rochester Priory to Sir Edward North.88 It thus
fell into the king's hands at the dissolution of the
priory in 1 5 40,*® but in 1541 the king granted it,
with the advowson of the vicarage, to the newly
constituted Dean and Chapter of Rochester,90 who are
the patrons of the living at the present day.
In 1559, however, the rectory and advowson were
granted by the Dean and Chapter, on a lease of 1 80
years, to John Fytche at £88 I/, zd. per annum."
This lease came into the possession of Simon Mayne,
by mesne assignments.91 Possibly the lease was in the
possession of Richard Beake, the firmer of the manor
under Elizabeth, and his widow, Colluberry by name,
married Simon Mayne." His son, the regicide, held
the lease, which was forfeited to Charles II on his
accession.9* Various petitions were made for the
remainder, one indeed from the Dean and Chapter of
Rochester,85 but it was granted in 1 660 to Richard
Lane.98 In some way, however, it was recovered by
the son of the regicide, who presented to the vicarage
in 1684, 1689, and I732.97 The lease terminated,
however, before 1 749, when the Dean and Chapter
themselves presented.98
The chapel of St. Mary in Haddenham was
granted by Queen Elizabeth in 1559 to Sir George
Howard, with half an acre of land called the ' Lamp
halfacre.'99 The Lady Chapel in Haddenham was
granted in 1585 to John Walton,100 but whether it
was the same chapel that had appeared in the earlier
grant is not clear.
One branch of the Rose family were amongst the
earliest of Buckinghamshire Quakers, and meetings
were held for many years at Grenville's Manor.
Their descendants possess a distraint warrant for
church tithe made on Edward Rose, junior, in
l649.101 A meeting-house was licensed in 1711, but
in 1813 there were no regular services held there.10*
The Quakers' burial ground still exists. A Baptist
chapel was built in 1 8 1 o, and there is also a Wesleyan
chapel in the parish
John Hart of Cotesford, county
CHARITIES Oxford, by his will, proved in the
P.C.C. 15 May 1665 (among other
charitable gifts) devised to the churchwardens and
overseers a yearly rent-charge for ever of £3 to be
issuing out of his lands and premises of Easington in
the said county, for the binding of one poor, honest,
godly boy to some good trade.
The annuity — less land tax — is received from the
executors of the late Thomas Greenwood, esq., of the
Manor House, Easington, and is duly applied.
The Alms Corn Charity. — The table of bene-
factions mentioned that the poor were entitled to
receive one quarter of wheat, and two quarters of
barley to be paid annually out of the great tithes every
Good Friday. The charity is paid in kind by the
representatives of the late Henry Bode, esq., and was
in 1906 divided amongst thirty-eight persons.
The Church Land, containing 2 r. 37 p., islet at £2
a year, which is carried to the church expenses. The
Poors' Land adjoining, containing 26 p., the rent
of which was carried to the poor rate, was sold
under an order of the Poor Law Board.
In 1813 Joseph Franklin by will left £50 a year to-
be laid out in bread for the poor at Christmas for ever.
A sum of £ i, 666 1 3*. ^d. consols was set aside to pro-
duce the annuity. The stock was, by the costs in a
chancery suit, reduced to £1,352 <)s. 2<i. consols,
which was transferred in 1859 to the official trustees.
The annual dividends, amounting to £32 l6/., are
duly distributed in bread.
The Rev. John Willis by will, proved in 1855, left
£<)oo consols, the dividends to be applied in the
distribution of coal. In 1902 the trustees were
authorized by the Charity Commissioners to purchase
1 1 a. I r. 2 6 p. of land, situate in Dollicott Field
within the manor of Haddenham for the sum of
£650, to be provided, together with the cost of the
enfranchisement of the copyhold portion, out of the
trust fund, which was thereby reduced to £80 8/. 8^.
consols (with the official trustees).
The land is let at £25 a year. The coal is dis-
tributed in January, in quantities of about 1 80 Ib. to-
each recipient.
8» V.C.H. Bucki. i, 232.
w Cott. MS. Dom. r, fol. 105.
84 Campb. Chart, vii, I.
84 Cott. MS. Dom. x, fol. 106.
86 Lines. Epii. Reg. Bp. Bek'« In«t.
'345-
« Ibid.
88 Pat. 31 Hen. VIII, pL I, m. 35.
w Valor Eccl. (Rec. Com.), iv, 101.
«° Pat. 33 Hen. VIII, pt 9.
91 Ibid. 12 Chat. II, pt. 1 6, no. 12.
" Ibid.
98 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccdxxvi,
no. 98.
94 Cal. S.P. Dom. 1 660-61, p. 344;
1670, p. 655. » Ibid.
286
98 Pat. 12 Chas. II, pt. 16 no. 12.
« P.R.O. Inst. Bks.
« Ibid.
•• Pat. 2 Eliz. pt. 4 ; ibid. 4 Eliz. pt-4-
100 Ibid. 28 Eliz. pt. 14.
101 From information supplied by Mr-
Walter Rose, Grenville's Manor.
1M Lysons, Mag. Brit. i.
STONE HUNDRED
GREAT HAMPDEN
GREAT HAMPDEN
Ha(m)dena (xi cent.) ; Magna Hamden (xiv cent.).
The parish of Hampden lies on the dopes of the
Chiltern Hills, the greatest height being 711$ ft.
above the ordnance datum at Hampden House. The
subsoil is chalk,1 and the surface clay and gravel.
The inhabitants are chiefly occupied in fanning,
I.I28J acres being arable land and 470} permanent
pasture. There are 408} acres of wood in the parish.*
A road from Aylesbury to Amersham passes through the
parish. There is practically no village, the people living
in scattered farms and cottages. The nearest stations are
at Princes Risborough and Great Missenden. There
is a common in the southern part of the parish, lying
near Blakemore Farm, and various springs give an
excellent supply of water, but there are, however, no
brooks of any kind. The earthwork known at
Grim's Dyke can be traced for some distance not far
from Hampden House. In 1885 portions of Little
Hampden and Stoke Mandeville parishes were formed
into the civil parish called Great and Little Hamp-
den by Local Government order, dated 25 March of
that year.
The principal house in the parish is Hampden
House, situated high on the Chiltern Hills in a breezy
and open park-like country. Though rich in associa-
tions and possessing many traces of old work, succes-
sive additions, particularly those of the 1 8th century,
have left only fragments of the earlier plans. As it
stands to-day, it is an E-shaped building facing south,
with a large east wing running north and south.
The principal entrance to the house is on the north
side of the main building. The oldest part is the
central projection of the E ; it is at least as old as
the first half of the 141)1 century, and according to
local tradition was originally a tower, though the
walls, some three feet thick, do not confirm the idea.
It is of two stories, with a modern embattled parapet
projecting on corbels, below which is a flat band of
trefoiled arches, probably an 18th-century addition,
which runs round the whole house at this level. In
the south face of this building is a wide I ;th-ccntury
entrance doorway, but the inner doorway, which
leads to the body of the house, is of mid- 14th-century
date with the characteristic wave-mould and hollow.
The rear arches of the windows of this room are also
of the same date. The body of the house dates, as
far as can be seen, from the beginning of the ijth
century, and is separated from the older portion by a
space of some eighteen inches or more. It is of two
stories and an attic, with wooden-mullioned windows,
and fine stacks of brick chimneys with octagonal
shafts, and contains in its eastern half the hall and the
great staircase, both of 17th-century date, but greatly
altered and ' embellished ' in the 1 8th century, and
again later in comparatively modern times. The
hall runs through two stories, having balustraded
galleries on all sides on the first-floor level ; its walls
are panelled and hung with portraits, and it has a
coved plaster ceiling. The kitchens and offices lie to
the west of the hall. The large east wing of the
house was completely altered in character by Robert,
afterwards first Viscount Hampden, about 1760, at
which time, or possibly later, almost the whole of the
exterior of the house was coated with cement. This
wing contains the present dining-room, with a bed-
room beyond it to the north, a large drawing-room in
the middle of the wing, with smaller rooms north and
south of it, and at the south end the old dining-room,
now a billiard room. A passage runs along the west
side of the wing, being made at the expense of the
series of rooms, which were arranged after the fashion
of the day, to open one to another. They contain
some fine plaster ceilings and interesting examples of
Chinese wall papers, the bills for which were recently
discovered amongst some old documents, and are dated
1740. In the bedroom at the north end of the wing
is a fine Chippendale bed, in which tradition says that
Queen Elizabeth once slept ; the claim has probably
been transferred from some older bed formerly here.
Hampden House contains many interesting portraits
of the H.impdcns and Hobarts, and also of many
great people from the i6th century on. There are
full-length portraits of Queen Elizabeth and Queen
Henrietta Maria, of Oliver Cromwell, Bishop Bonner,
Sir Kenelm Digby, and others. Of John Hampden
' the patriot," with whose name the chief interest of
the house must ever be associated, there are several
relics. A silver cup, dated 1568, is preserved as that
from which he received the Holy Sacrament before
his death in June 1643 ; a long room in the attic
story is called John Hampden's Library, and the room
in the angle between the hall and the east wing is
said to be the scene of his arrest for refusal to pay the
ship-money tax. There are two portraits of him in
the house, one by Jansen coming from Strawberry
Hill, but it seems doubtful whether they, or a small
bust also here, are really what they claim to be.
The surroundings of the house are very picturesque,
a splendid avenue of beech trees running eastwards
down the slopes from the east wing, and close by to
the south is the church of Great Hampden, approached
from the road by another avenue.
There is only one mention of HAMP-
M4NOR DEN in Domesday Book, and this in all
probability refers to Great Hampden only.*
Before the Conquest Baldwin, a man of Archbishop
Stigand, held and could sell the manor of Hamp Jen,
but afterwards it formed part of the lands of William
son of Ansculf.4 With the rest of his lands it passed
to the Somery family, and formed part of the honour
of Dudley.* In 1 302-3 it was held of John de
Bernak of the honour of Dudley,' and in 1 346 of
Galfrid Bernak.7 William son of Ansculf granted
the manor to Otbert, or Osbert, who held it at the
time of the Domesday Survey.8 In a 17th-century
pedigree of the Hampden family, Osbert is said to
have been the son of Baldwin, the tenant in the time
of Edward the Confessor, and the descent of the
Hampden family is traced from him.' One name,
however, in the pedigree does not coincide with the
descent obtained from a lawsuit of the reign of
Henry III. In the pedigree Osbert was succeeded in
1 I'.CM. Bucki. i, Geological Map.
1 Information from Bd. of Agric.
<I005). • Y.C.H. Bucla. i, 154*.
•Ibid.
> Tntt d, Nrvitl (Rec. Com.), 245*.
• Ft mi. Aidi, i, 98.
287
1 Ibid, i, 113.
r.c.ll. Buck,, i, a 54*.
' Liptcomb, Hi it. of Buck,, ii, 301.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
direct succession by Baldwin, Robert, and Bartholo-
mew. In the lawsuit, Alexander appears instead of
Bartholomew, his mother being Alice, the daughter
and heiress of ' Remerus le Loherer.' 10 Alexander
was followed by Reginald" and another Alexander,
who held the manor, as one knight's fee, early in the
reign of Henry III." He was Sheriff of Bedford-
shire and Buckinghamshire in 1249 and 1259." He
died between 1272—3" and 1302— 3, when he had
been succeeded by his second son Reginald.1* John
de Hampden, the son of Reginald, held the manor in
I346,16 and was a knight of the shire in two Parlia-
ments of Edward III in 1351-2, and again in 1363."
He died in 1375, and his son
Edmund inherited the manor,18
and, like his father, repre-
sented the county in Parlia-
ment.19 He was also sheriff
of the two counties five times
during the reigns of Richard II,
Henry IV, and Henry V."
John Hampden, his son, suc-
ceeded him," and obtained, in
1446—7, a charter of liberties
within his manor of Great
Hampden, granting him a
view of frankpledge twice a
year, with the assize of bread, wine, and ale, and
other privileges. He also had a grant of free warren in
his demesne lands, and licence to inclose and impark
500 acres of land and 100 acres of wood in the
manor." He was sheriff in 1456." Thomas
Hampden succeeded him in 1457-8," and held the
manor till his death, shortly after the accession of
Henry VII." His heir was his son John Hamp-
den,86 but the manor seems to have been in the hands
of trustees or feoffees till 1495, when they demised
it to John Hampden." He died the next year,"
and Great Hampden passed to his son John.*9 The
second John Hampden was knighted before 1513,
and in that year was with the royal fleet in command
of The Saviour.*0 He also may be identified with the
Sir John Hampden ' of the Hill ' who followed
Henry VIII to the Field of the Cloth of Gold," and
attended him at his meeting with the Emperor
Charles V.32 On his death in 1 5 5 3 M he left two
daughters as his heiresses, but he left Great Hampden
by will to his cousin John Hampden,*4 the son of
William Hampden of Dunton, and of Audrey one
of the daughters and heiresses of Richard Hampden
of Great Kimble.35 John Hampden left the manor
to his son Griffith in tail male, and the latter
HAMFDIN. Argent a
laltire gules between four
eagles assure.
succeeded to it on his father's death in 1558."
He died in 1591, and it passed to his son William
Hampden,37 who married Elizabeth daughter of Sir
Henry Cromwell and aunt of the Lord Protector.38
He did not survive his father many years, dying in
I597,39 and naturally had not taken so much part in
the public life of the county as some of his predeces-
sors. His will is interesting, and suggests that his
life was mainly occupied with country pursuits, his
horses being carefully described and generally be-
queathed by name.*0 His son and heir John was a
minor at the time of his father's death.41 He after-
wards became the most famous member of his family,
earning the name of the ' Patriot ' " by his refusal to
pay the illegal tax of ship-money. He was born in
London, but probably lived as a boy at Great Hamp-
den." He was sent for three years to the grammar
school at Thame, and in 1609 became a commoner
of Magdalen College, Oxford.44 In 1613 he was
admitted a student of the Inner Temple,45 and six
years later he married his first wife Elizabeth Symeon.
The next year he was returned to Parliament for the
first time,46 and from 1625 to 1628 he represented
the borough of Wendover without interruption.47 In
these years he mainly lived in London, and though
sitting on many committees, did not take a leading
part in Parliamentary affairs. Before the dissolution
of 1629 he retired to the country and lived at Great
Hampden.*8 There are, however, practically no
records of his life there, his private letters that have
been preserved being very few in number. He is
said to have been fond of making improvements in his
estates and house, and parts of the present house may
have been built by him in 1629 and the succeeding
years.
To Great Hampden the sons of Sir John Eliot
frequently went during their father's imprisonment in
the Tower.49 Eliot himself received provisions from
Great Hampden, one such present being sent with
the following letter : ' This bearer fe appointed to
present you with a buck out of my paddock, which
must be a small one to hold proportion with the place
and soyle it was bred in.' M In the county he was
active as a justice of the peace for the Three Hundreds
of Aylesbury." In 1634 he was presented at a special
ecclesiastical visitation for not always attending his
own parish church. His opposition to the Church
of England and the bishops had not at this time
become so pronounced as it did later, and he made
his peace with Sir Nathaniel Brent, the vicar-general,
promising his willing obedience to the laws of the
Church in the future."
10 Curia Regis R. 73, m. 6 d.
" Ibid.
18 Testa dt Kevlll (Rec. Com.), 245*,
259*.
18 List of Sheriffs, P.R.O.
» Feet of F. Bucks. Hil. I Edw. I.
« Feud. Aids, i, 98.
" Ibid. 123.
V Return of Members of Part.
19 Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii, 231.
19 Return of Members of Part.
» List of Skeriffi, P.R.O.
sl De Banco. R. 813, m. 442.
» Chart. R. 25 & 26 Hen. VI, no. 26.
88 List of Sheriffs, P.R.O.
84 Chan. Inq. p.m. 36 Hen. VI, no. 9.
85 Ibid. (Ser. 2), xxiii, no. 47.
* Cat. of Inq. Hen. VII, no. 124. In
the Buckinghamshire inquisition, the
name of the heir of Thomas Hampden
is given as Edward, but this is a mistake
for John, who appears in the Essex return.
«De Banco. R. Mich. II Hen. VII,
m. 1 1 2 d.
98 From a brass in Great Hampden
Church.
"Lipscomb, Hut. of Bucks, ii, 233 ;
Feet of F. Bucks, Mich. 28 Hen. VIII.
*> L. and P. Hen. VIII, i, 3980.
M Ibid.
88 Ibid iii (i), 906.
88 From a brass in Great Hampden
Church.
84 P.C.C. 1 1 More.
85 Exch. Inq. p.m. bdle. 25, no. II.
88 Ibid. bdle. 51, no. 21.
*' Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccxxxii,
no. 67.
288
M Diet. Nat. Biog. rxiv, 254,
89 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccxlviii, no.
39-
40 Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii, 235.
** Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccxlviii, no..
39-
48 Diet. Nat. Biog. xxiv, 254.
48 Nugent, Mem. of Hampden, 20.
44 Ibid.
45 Ibid.
4« Ibid.
4' Return of Members ofParl.
48 Nugent, Mem. of Hampden.
49 Ibid. ; letters of John Hampden to.
Sir John Eliot.
*» Ibid. 79.
61 Cal. ofS.P. Dom. 1629-31, p. 417 i
'63r-3> PP- 44> 3°8 i l634~5. P- 447-
68 Cal. ofS.P. Dom. 1634-5, P- 25°-
i
o
•f.
x
h
X
U
o
O
O
Q
h
it
ul
U
x
B
X
s
X
STONE HUNDRED
Clarendon describes him at this time as being 'of
ancient family, and a fair estate in the county Buck-
ingham, where he was esteemed very much, which his
carri.ige and behaviour to all men deserved very well.
But there was scarcely a gentleman in England of so
good a fortune (for he was the owner of above £1,500
land yearly) less known out of the county in which he
lived than he was, until he appeared in the Exchequer
chamber to support the right of the people in the
case of ship-money.' a The determination, reached
in 1636, to oppose the levy of ship-money severed
the close connexion between John H.impdcn and his
own parish. From that date he was rarely at Great
Hampden, and after 1640 never lived there again.44
On the outbreak of war he raised a regiment of Buck-
inghamshire infantry, and commanded it until his
death." At the battle of Chalgrove Field, where he
was mortally wounded, he would not wait for his
own regiment, but went as a volunteer with the
troops that had already come up.4* He died shortly
after the engagement, and is supposed to have been
buried in Great Hampden Church, but the places of
his death and burial have been much disputed.
Richard Hampden," the son of the patriot, suc-
ceeded his father in the family estates,48 and shared
his political opinions. He was, however, an ardent
supporter of Oliver Cromwell and voted for his
accepting the crown in 1656." He was nominated
in the same year a member of the Other House,
and so incurred the satire of a republican pamphleteer,
who ascribed his nomination to the desire ' to settle
and secure him to the interest of the new Court and
wholly take him off from the thoughts of ever follow-
ing his father's steps or inheriting his noble vir-
tues. . . .' * He sat in Parliament, either for Wen-
dover or for Buckinghamshire, in many of the Parlia-
ments after the Restoration." He was a Presbyterian
and a great advocate of the Exclusion Bill.1'' He did
not, however, take part in any of the plots of the time,
though his son John was implicated in the Rye House
Plot in 1683, and two years later joined Monmouth's
Rebellion." Richard Hampden sat in the Conven-
tion Parliament in 1689, and on the accession of
William III obtained office, being appointed Commis-
sioner of the Treasury and Chancellor of the Ex-
chequer.14 He died :n 1695 ** and was succeeded by
his son, who had obtained a pardon for his share in
Monmouth's rising." John sat with his father for
Wendover in the Convention Parliament," but
suffered from depression from the time of his trial for
high treason and finally committed suicide in 1696."
He was succeeded by his son Richard,6* who also
represented Wendover or the county in several Par-
liaments." He was appointed Treasurer of the Navy
in 1717-18," but in 1720 a deficiency of £73,706
odd appeared in his accounts, said to be due to
speculations in the South Sea scheme." His estates
GREAT HAMPDEN
were liable to sequestration, and a bill was brought in
to enable the Treasury to compound with him. The
affair created great excitement, and is mentioned in a
news letter of the time — ' Hampden's petition and
the Wycombe election, both scandalous, are the only
subject of talk. I know not what is done on the
first, I believe what Sir Robert hinted, but would not
propose, will be followed, to take half the estate to
the public, and to settle the remainder on his wife
and brother.' n This was practically the procedure
followed, and Great Hampden, which was preserved,
passed to John Hampden, the half-brother and heir
of Richard, who died in 1728." John Hampden
was the last member of the family in the male line to
hold Great Hampden, which, on his death in 1753,
passed under his will to the descendants of Ruth, the
second daughter of John Hampden the patriot."
She had married Sir John Trevor, and the Hampden
estates came to her grandson Robert Trevor.7* By
royal licence he took the name of Hampden for him-
self and his heirs male in lieu
of his patronymic of Trevor.77
He succeeded his brother as
fourth Baron Trevor of Brom-
ham in 1764, and in 1776
was created Viscount Hamp-
den of Great and Little
Hampden.78 His two sons
succeeded him at Great Hamp-
den,7* but on the death in
1824 of John, the younger
son, without children, the
estate passed under the will of
the John Hampden of 1753
to the descendants of Mary, the sixth daughter of
John Hampden the patriot. She had married Sir
John Hobart, hart., and her
descendant, George Robert
Hobart, fifth Earl of Bucking-
hamshire, succeeded to the
Hampden possessions.60 In
1824 by royal licence he took
the name of Hampden only,
but died in 1 849 without
direct heirs. He was suc-
ceeded by his brother, who
took the name of Hobart-
Hampden,81 and his estates
are now held by the present
Earl of Buckinghamshire, his
great-grandson. The manor of Great Hampden
has been enfranchised, but the earl remains the sole
landowner in the parish.
The church of Sr. MARY MAG-
CHURCH DALEN consists of a chancel 27ft. 7 in.
by i 5 ft. 10 in. ; a nave with clearstory
42 ft. 6 in. by 19 ft. 3 in. ; north and south aisles
TREVOR. Party bend
sinistenvite ermine and
ermineet a lion or.
HOBAKT. Sahle a itar
or between two faunchei
ermine.
" Hhl. of the Rebellion (ed. 1888), iii,
59-60.
" Nugent, Mem. of HamfJen, 135.
•» Warwick, Memoirei of At Rtipu of
King Chat. I (ed. 1703), 140 ( Hiit. MSS.
Com. Ref. liv, App. ii, IO1 ; Lipicomb,
hilt, of Biuh. ii, 247.
" Clarendon, Hut. of Rebellion, bk. yii,
no. 79-80.
W Diet. Nat. Biog. iiiv, 166.
» Recov. R. Mich. 1653 j Feet of F.
Buckt. Eatt. 26 Chat. II.
" Harl. Miu. iii, 463. » Ibid. 487.
n Return of Member! of Part.
n Liptcomb, Hiit. of Bucki. ii, 260.
** Ibid. 16 1 j Diet. Nat. Biog. xxir,
264. •< Ibid. 266.
« Ibid. « Ibid. 264.
•f Return of Memkert of Part.
*• Diet. Nat. Biog. xnv, 264.
" RCCOT. R. Hil. 13 Will. III.
7° Return of Membert of Part.
n Portland MSS. (Hitt. MSS. Com.),
289
" Lipicomb, Hiit. of Biuki. ii, 265.
»» Portland MSS. (Hitt. MSS. Com.),
Tii, 4*9-
'4 Liptcomb, Hitt. ofBuc/ki. ii, 269.
'• G.E.C. Comflete Peerage.
" Ibid.
" Ibid.
n He had bought the manor of Little
Hampden in 1765 from John Dodd.
"• G.E.C Complete Peerage.
» Rfcov. R. Mich. 5 Gco. IV.
0 G.E.C. Comflete Peerage.
37 '
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
9 ft. 3 in. and 8 ft. wide respectively ; a south-west
tower 7 ft. 3 in. square, and a south porch, all measure-
ments being internal. Previous to the I4th cen-
tury the church appears to have consisted of an
aiseless nave and a chancel of the same size as
at present, or nearly so. Aisles were added to
the nave in the 1 4th century, between 1325 and
1350, the north aisle being probably the first to be
built. If they had predecessors no trace of them is
now visible. The lower part of the tower, which
carries on the lines of the south aisle and practically
forms its western bay, belongs to the same period.
The upper stages are of later date, and it may be that
the work here was interrupted by the Black Death.
The chancel arch was inserted towards the end of the
1 4th century, and at the beginning of the I ;th cen-
tury another scheme of enlargement was taken in
hand. The tower was completed, a clearstory added
to the nave, and the north wall of the north aisle
was taken down and the aisle widened, the junction
of the 1 4th and 15th-century work being still clearly
visible at both ends of the aisle. Up to this time the
aisles were probably roofed by an extension of the
high-pitched nave roof, the line of which is to be
seen on the east wall of the tower ; but at the date
of the widening of the north aisle, the new north
wall of which was built higher than the old one, a
low-pitched roof was put on the aisle, and at the same
time the south aisle walls were raised and a similar
roof constructed on this side of the church. The
chancel seems to have been rebuilt or remodelled about
the same time, and its windows and those of the aisles
belong to this date. In modern times the tower has
been largely restored and an outer steep-pitched roof
put on the nave, but traces of both the older gables
are to be seen on the west wall of the nave and less
clearly on the east wall.
The chancel is lit by five three-light 15th-century
windows, one to the east and two in the north and
south walls. On either side of the east window is a
modern canopied image niche designed from frag-
ments found here and now preserved in a glass case
in the north aisle. At the east end of the south wall
is a small I 5th-century piscina, and in the western jambs
of the north-west and south-west windows are the
openings of squints from both aisles. The chancel
arch is of two orders, continuously moulded with a
hollow chamfer and a double ogee and irregular half-
octagonal moulded capitals.
The nave is of four bays. The north arcade,
earlier in date than the other, has piers of four half-
round shafts with hollow chamfers between and
moulded capitals and bases. The arches are two-
centred and of two moulded orders, with labels having
grotesque drips over the piers, while at a considerable
height above the crown of each arch is a two-light
clearstory window of 15th-century date with a seg-
mental head, trefoiled lights, and a deep external
splay, the glass line being nearly in the middle of the
wall. The south arcade is of the same detail, except
in regard to the capitals, which are deeper and of a
somewhat later section. This arcade is of three bays
only, on account of the position of the tower at the
west end of the south aisle, and there are also only
three south clearstory windows. The west window
of the nave is of 14th-century date, with three tre-
foiled lights and flowing tracery of late and rather
clumsy design.
The north aisle has a three-light 15th-century east
window, of the same design as those of the chancel,
and two similar windows in the north wall, between
which is the north door. This is of 14th-century
detail, and must have been moved outwards when the
aisle was widened. There is no west window to this
aisle.
The south aisle has an east and a south window
like those of the north aisle. At the east end of the
south wall is a 14th-century piscina with a cinque-
foiled head of two orders and a shelf. The south
door is of the same date, with plain chamfered jambs
and two-centred head, and opens to a contemporary
south porch with a moulded outer arch, small square-
headed windows on east and west, and stone benches.
In the western bay of the south aisle stands the
tower, its eastern arch being of two wave-moulded
orders which die into widely chamfered responds. The
tower has, in its lowest stage, two small lancets very
much modernized, and is of three stages with an
embattled parapet, its external masonry being in great
measure modern. The two-light belfry windows are
very small, and have above them two quatrefoiled
openings on each face, which are entirely in modern
stonework.
The woodwork of the church is of no special in-
terest. The nave roof, resting on stone corbels carved
with shield-bearing angels, is of 15th-century style,
with moulded tie-beams and carved brackets beneath
them, and in the south porch is a good roof with
1 5th-century detail, ornamented with roses and a
shield of the Hampden arms.
There is also a I yth-century Communion table, and
within the altar rails two handsome carved oak chairs
of about the same date. The font, in the north aisle,
is circular and of 1 3th-century date with a circular
moulded stem and cup-shaped fluted bowl, with a
band of ornament round the upper edge. It belongs
to a type developed from the local 12th-century form.
On the south wall of the chancel is a Purbeck slab
to Elizabeth wife of John Hampden, 1634, daughter
and sole heiress of Edmund Symeon of Pyrton in
Oxfordshire. In the south aisle is a wall monument
to Richard Hampden, 1662, and his wife Anne
Lane, 1674, with a shield bearing the Hampden
arms, impaling Party azure and gules three saltires
argeni, which are the arms of Lane.
In the chancel floor are the following brasses : —
The figures of John Hampden, esq., 1496, and his
wife Elizabeth Sidney, with four sons and six daughters.
On the slab are five shields : (i) Quarterly, 1st Hamp-
den, 2nd and 3rd, Argent a chief gules and therein
two harts' heads caboshed or, for Popham, 4th, Six
lions ; (2) Hampden impaling Or a pheon azure, for
Sidney ; (3) and (4) Sidney ; and (5) Hampden.
Griffith Hampden, 1591, and Anne Cave his
second wife, 1594. An inscription plate without
figures. On a shield are the following coats : Quar-
terly, 1st, Hampden ; 2nd, Popham ; 3rd, Six lions ;
4th, Hampden with a border azure for Hampden of
Great Kimble ; impaling : Quarterly, 1st and 4th
Azure fretty argent, for Cave ; 2nd and 3rd Ermine
a bend" with three boars' heads razed thereon.
William Hampden, 1597, son of Griffith Hampden,
and Anne his wife ; no figures. On a shield of
twelve quarters: 1st, Hampden; 2nd, Popham ; 3rd,
Six lions ; 4th, A lion ; 5th, Three spear-heads ;
6th, A cheveron between three fleurs-de-lis ; 7th,
290
STONE HUNDRED
Sidney ; 8th, Cave ; gth, Ermine on a bend three
boars' heads razed ; I oth, Three cheverons ; 1 1 th,
A lion ; 1 2th, A lion.
The figures of five sons and three daughters, with
no inscription, but a shield with Azure three horses'
heads cut off at the neck with their bridles or impal-
ing Hampden, which shield commemorates the match
of Sir Jerome Horsey, let., with Elizabeth, eldest
daughter of John Hampden and Anne Cave.
The figures of Sir John Hampden, kt., 20 De-
cember, 1553, Elizabeth Savage his first wife, Philippa
Wilford his second wife, and three daughters. There
are three shields : (i) Quarterly, 1st, Hampden ;
2nd, Sidney ; 3rd, Popham ; 4th, Six lions ; impal-
ing : Argent a pale indented sable, for Savage ;
(2) The quartered coat as above ; (3) The same, im-
paling Gules a cheveron between three leopards' heads
or with a ring on the cheveron, for Wilford.
An inscription plate to William Hampden, Lord of
Emmington, Oxfordshire, 1612.
On the north wall of the chancel is a large monu-
ment set up by Robert, afterwards first Viscount
Hampden, in 1754, bearing a relief of the battle of
LITTLE HAMPDEN
Chalgrove Field, at which John Hampden was
mortally wounded. Above is a tree hung with
sixteen shields showing the alliances of the Hampden
family.
The grave which is said to be that of John Hamp-
den was opened in 1828 in order to test the accuracy
of the accounts of his death, but the results were not
conclusive.
There are three bells, the treble by Taylor, 1906,
and the other two of 1625 by Ellis Knight.
The plate consists of a chalice of 1805, a paten of
1804, and a plated flagon and second paten.
The only old book of registers contains baptisms
from 1537 to 1812, burials 1557 to 1812, and mar-
riages 1557 to 175*. The marriage register for 1752
to 1812 seems to be missing.
The church of St. Mary Magda-
JDfOfrSON len* is a rectory, the advowson of
which was held by the Hampdens,
and under the will of John Hampden passed to the
Trevors in 1754 and to the Hobarts in 1824." The
Earl of Buckinghamshire is the patron of the living
at the present day.
LITTLE HAMPDEN
Hambden (xiii cent.) ; Parva Hamdene (xiv cent.).
Little Hampden parish lies to the north-east of
Great Hampden parish, on the Chiltern Hills, the
greatest height being 778 ft. above the Ordnance
datum.1
The parish contains 1 1 5 J acres of wood, and the
chief occupation of the inhabitants is farming, 285 acres
being arable land and 84 acres permanent pasture.'
The subsoil is chalk,' and the surface clay and gravel.
The nearest station is at Great Missenden, on the
Metropolitan Extension Railway. The village lies on
a cross road running south from Ellesborough, the few
houses of which it is composed being built on the
western slope of a valley in the chalk hills, with the
church at the south, looking out eastward over the
Missenden valley. The lower slopes are covered with
copses, but where the village stands is grass land, the
road rising to the north and running across Little
Hampden Common. Near the church is the Manor
House, an old building, but with little to which a
definite date can be given.
The greater part of the parish now forms part of
Great and Little Hampden civil parish, which was
formed by a Local Government Board Order dated
25 March 188;.
LITTLE HJMPDEN appears to have
MANOR been originally included in the parish of
Hartwell. In Domesday Book there is no
distinction made between Great and Little Hampden.
' HampJcn ' was part of the land of William son of
Ansculf, and later was united to the honour of Dudley,
to which Great Hampden alone belonged.4 It seems
probable, therefore, that this entry in Domesday Book
did not include Little Hampden, which was either
omitted entirely, or else formed part of William
Peverel's lands in Hartwell.
The latter supposition seems probable, because at the
end of the I2th century Walter de Hcrtwell and his
son Barnabas were said to hold one knight's fee in
Hartwell ; 4 when they granted their land to William
de Luton, the manors of Hartwell and Hampden were
specified,' but in 1302-3 Thomas de Luton still only
held one knight's fee in Hartwell with Little Hamp-
den.7 In 1316 they are also described as forming one
township.8 Little Hampden is first mentioned separ-
ately in the grant referred to above,' and from that
time its descent followed that of the manor of Hart-
well (q.v.) until the 1 7th century.'"
Sir Thomas Lee, bart., of Hartwell, is said to have
sold the manor of Little Hampden to Samuel Dodd
in 1 68$." Another account gives 1710 as the date of
the sale." In 1763 John Dodd held the manor of
Little Hampden," and two years later, together with
his son, he sold it to Robert Trevor, Viscount Hamp-
den," who had taken the name of Hampden on
inheriting the Hampden estates in 1753."
On the death of John, third and last Viscount
Hampden, in 1824, Little Hampden was left to
Robert Trevor, the son of his cousin Mary Cock, who
had married Robert Trevor of Tingrith."
Robert Trevor died in 1834, leaving three daugh-
ters, none of whom married. On the death of the
* Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. i), xiiii. no. 47.
*• Exch. Inq. p.m. bdle. 8 1, no. 21;
Recor. R. Trin. 1 1 Ch.n. I ; Feet of F.
Bucki. Eait. 26 Chaa. II ; Recor. R.
Mich. 5 Geo. III.
1 Ord. Sur».
* Inf. from Bd. of Agric. (190;).
• V.CM. Butki. i, Geol. Map.
• Ibid. 254*.
• Rtd Bk. of Exck. (Roll* Ser.), 90, 109 j
Exctrfta i Rat. Fin. (Rec. Com.), 291.
• Feet of F. Bucki. Eait. 55 Hen. III.
7 FruJ. Aidi, i, 97. * Ibid. 113.
• Feet of F. Buck*. Eait. 55 Hen. III.
10 In 13*5 the manor of Little Hamp-
den, with land in Hartwell, wai granted
to N cholai de Luton and Joan hit wife,
bjr hit father, Thorns* de Luton. Nicho-
29I
lit afterwarda aucceeded hia father aa
lord of both manori. Cat. Pat. 1324 7,
p. 133.
11 LipKomb, Hiit. of Bucki. ii, 295.
11 Lyiona, Mag. Brit, i, 571.
« Recov. R. Hil. 3 Geo. III.
" Feet of F. Bucka. Trin. 5 Geo. III.
" G.E.C. Complin Petragi.
u Burke, Landid Gntrj, 1 906.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
youngest, Catherine, in 1871, the manor, under the
will of Viscount Hampden, passed to the descendants
of Matthew Cock, brother of Mary Cock.17
His granddaughter, Jane Letitia Crispin, married
Charles Battye, but on inheriting the Trevor estates
she took the name of Trevor-Battye. Her grandson,
TREVOR, Party bend-
tinisterwise crminois and
pean a lion countercoloured.
BATTYI. Sable a
che-veron argent between
three goats argent, each
having two roundels sable
upon him, and a chief in"
•vecked or -with a demi-
man holding a club and
cut ojf at the waist be~
tween two cinque foill
gules therein.
Mr. Charles Edmund Augustine Trevor Trevor-
Battye, is the present lord of the manor.
The church (dedication unknown)
CHURCH stands on a somewhat contracted site, the
ground falling rapidly from east to west,
and consists of a chancel 15 ft. 6 in. by 13 ft. 10 in.,
a nave 20 ft. by 1 3 ft. 3 in., and a wooden north
porch with an upper floor serving as a bell turret.
Externally the nave and chancel are of equal width.
The walling of the nave may be of the I 2th century,
and a carved fragment of that date is set in the chancel
wall, but there is nothing in the architectural features
to prove that any part of the structure is earlier than
the 1 3th century. The chancel has been almost
completely rebuilt in modern times, and its greater
internal width as compared with the width of the
nave is probably due to a thinning of the walls rather
than to any process of rebuilding round a former
chancel. The chancel arch has also been widened in
modern times, the new crown being formed of brick.
The south porch and bell-turret are apparently of 1 6th-
century date, while about the end of the 1 8th century
new windows were inserted in the nave and all the
old ones destroyed.
The east window of the chancel is modern, of two
trefoiled lights with 14th-century detail, and on
either side of the chancel is a single trefoiled light,
also modern. A third window at the west end of the
north wall is a small lancet of 13th-century date, the
sill of which forms the head of a small low side
window, rebated for a frame, the hinges of which are
still in its jamb. At the east end of the south wall is
a 13th-century piscina with a chamfered pointed head
and a label ; on the face between the label and the
chamfer is a band of running foliage ornament. In
the same wall, a little to the west, is the 12th-century
fragment already mentioned, a carving of a bishop or
abbot in mass vestments, with his right hand raised in
benediction, and holding a crozier in his left. There
seem to be traces of an inscription above his head.
The pointed chancel arch is plain, of a single square
order, and much mutilated.
The nave is lit by three plain pointed 18th-century
two-light windows, two on the south and one on the
west, the latter taking the place of an earlier window,
of which a few traces remain, though not enough to
show its character. Of the windows in the south
wall, the westernmost is built in the place of the old
south doorway, the lower part of the opening of which
remains, blocked with brickwork. The only opening
in the north wall is the north doorway, a plain arched
opening with chamfered jambs and head, which may
be of the 141)1 century.
The north porch is a picturesque half-timber
structure of two stories, with a red-tiled gabled roof,
and small louvred openings to the second stage, which
contains the single bell. The arched entrance is
formed of two naturally-curved pieces of timber,
which are chamfered, and form a rough two-centred
head.
The font is of 1 8th-century date, with a small round
basin upon a slim baluster stem, and there are no
fittings of any interest except the altar slab, now
placed under the altar table. It has the five con-
secration crosses, but no detail from which it might
be dated.
The roof of the nave also, though undoubtedly old,
is so plain as to give no clue to its date.
The great interest of the church lies in the wall
paintings in the nave, which are of various dates from
the 1 3th century onwards. On either side of the
chancel arch are figures under trefoiled canopies, of
late 13th-century style, and on the south wall
remains of a 14th-century Weighing of Souls. The
figure of St. Michael is almost destroyed, but the
scales are clearly visible, and also the figure of the
devil pulling down the balance on the one side, while
Burke, Landed Gentry, 1906.
LITTLE HAMPDEN CHURCH : THE NORTH PORCH
292
STONE HUNDRED
HARTWELL
our Lady on the other seeks to counteract him. On
the north wall is a mass of painting of various dates.
There are two particularly finely drawn lions to a
large scale and of i^h-century workmanship, and
part of a large 15th-century figure of St. Christopher,
while to the west of the north doorway is a very
interesting figure, also representing St. Christopher,
but of early I4th or late ijth-century style.
There is only one bell, which was cast by Thomas
Mean in 1791.
The church plate consists of a chalice of 1771, a
paten of 1 86 1, and a pewter flagon and almsdish.
There are only two old books of registers, the first
containing baptisms and burials from 1672, and
marriages from 1701 to 1768, while the second book
has the baptisms and burials from 1770 to 1812.
The marriage register for this period is missing.
The church of Little Hampden
was appendant to the church of
Hartwell." How closely the con-
nexion was maintained is not certain, but presenta-
tions were made to the two churches together." In
1754 there were, however, separate churchwardens
for Little Hampden."
The ecclesiastical parishes were separated by an
Order in Council dated 28 June 1892, and Little
Hampden was then united with Great Hampden.
The advowson was held by the lords of the manor
until the latter was sold to the family of Dodd. Sir
Thomas Lee retained the advowson, and his descend-
ants presented to the rectories of Hartwell and Little
Hampden " until the separation of the parishes. The
Earl of Buckinghamshire now holds the advowson of
the united living of Great and Little Hampden.
HARTWELL
Herdwelle (zi cent.) ; Hertwell (xiii cent.).
The parish of Hartwell lies in the Vale of Ayles-
bury, bordering on Aylesbury parish on the west.
The height of the land varies from 200 ft. to 300 ft.
above the Ordnance datum. Various streams run
through the parish and join the River Thame, and
there are several springs of water. The subsoil is
London Clay, Kimmeridge Clay, and Portland Beds;1
the surface soil is rich loam. The population is
chiefly occupied in agriculture, on grazing farms or
in market gardens. A large brick-kiln, however, pro-
vides work for a considerable number of men. The
main road from Thame to Aylesbury passes through
the parish, and the nearest station is also at Ayles-
bury. The common fields of Hartwell were inclosed
under an Act of 16 George III, the award being
given in 1779. The
parish contains 9 1 8
acres ;' 853 are laid
down in permanent
grass, and 234 are
arable land.' Various
Anglo-Saxon remains
have been dug up,
chiefly consisting of
iron weapons. The
park in which Hart-
well House stands
takes up a great part
of the parish, and the
church is within its
boundaries and close
to the house. The
old rectory is a pretty
piece of early i8th-
century brickwork
with a well designed
cornice. There is no
village of Hartwell,
but the chief collec-
tion of houses is known
as Lower Hartwell, on
the north-west boundary of the park, end is com-
posed for the most part of small half-timbered and
thatched cottages.
Hartwell House is an interesting example of a mid-
i8th-century remodelling of an early 17th-century
plan. The latter was evidently of the |-| form, with
a main block standing east and west, about 105 ft.
long, and east and west wings of about the same
length, the main block joining the wings near their
north ends ; the wings extended southwards and
formed two sides of a courtyard open to the south,
with projecting buildings in the north-cast and north-
west angles, the former containing the principal stair-
case, while the site of the latter is now occupied by
the chapel, an arrangement which may have existed
in the older building. In the middle of the i8th
HARTWELL HOUSE : THE ENTRANCE FRONT
" F«t of F. Buckt. E»tt. 55 Hen.
Ill ; RecoT. R. Trin. 14 Ja«. I | ibid.
Trin. 11 Chat. II.
" P.R.O. Intt. Bki. 1694.
» Churchwardeni' Acct. Bk. in poi-
icuinn of the rector of Great Hamp-
den.
« P.R.O. Init. Bka. 1694, 1793.
293
> V.C.H. Buck, i, GeoL Map.
1 Ord. Surv.
1 Inf. from Bd. of Agric. (1905). Thcie
return! include land in other pariihei.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
century the east front was rebuilt and the court
between the wings on the south almost completely
filled in with new rooms. The north front, how-
ever, with the exception of the parapet and cornice,
retains its old character. The house is faced with
wrought stone in two stories, and is entered from the
north through a two-story porch in the middle of the
front. The doorway has a panelled semicircular
arch flanked by pilasters carrying an enriched frieze
and cornice, and above it is an extremely handsome
projecting semicircular oriel window, with stone
mullions and transoms springing from a large conical
corbel richly carved with lines of architectural orna-
ment. The porch is flanked on either hand, but
not with exact symmetry, with tall mullioned and
transomed bay windows, that on the east side lighting
the hall, and the other a room now the butler's
pantry. Both bays have similar windows on the first
floor. The hall has a large fireplace in the south
wall, and is a handsome room somewhat over-
decorated with plaster panels and ceiling during the
18th-century operations; it preserves none of its
original fittings, all traces of the screens at the west
having disappeared. At the south-east are doorways
to the main staircase and to the breakfast-room. The
north ends of the two wings of the house project
some 1 5 ft. from the north front of the main block,
and have, at what was the old first-floor level, large
projecting bay windows resting on moulded corbel
courses. The present first floor is at a higher level
and cuts across the lower lights of the windows.
At the south-west of the hall a doorway, originally
opening from the south end of the screens, now leads
into a large semicircular lobby two stories in height,
lit by a skylight and with a gallery running round at
the first-floor level. The decoration of this is some-
what later in character than the other 1 8th-century
work, being in the style of the brothers Adam. The
great staircase south-east of the hall is part of the lyth-
century house, and an unusually fine example of its
style. The stairway is 8 ft. wide, all of oak and
decorated at intervals by large panelled newels sur-
mounted by statues of gods and heroes, &c., amongst
them Samson with the Jawbone of the Ass and Her-
cules in his Lion Skin. A curious feature is that the
swords and spears carried by these figures are loose
and may be removed, possibly in order that, upon
state occasions, they might be replaced by flambeaux.
The breakfast-room, east of the hall, is panelled with
lyth-century oak panelling in small squares. The
east wing was presumably gutted in the 1 8th century
and completely rearranged. The great chamber was
probably at its north end lighted by the large bay
window which still shows on the north front ; the
wing now contains the dining-room, drawing-room
and library, all of which are decorated in a manner
somewhat similar to the hall. The library in par-
ticular is an excellent piece of work, with ranges of
white-painted book shelves with gilded wire screens,
containing an interesting collection of books. From
the east side of the library an observatory was
built out early in the iQth century, but has now
been pulled down. A chimney-piece in this wing
bears the date 1658, but its original position is-
uncertain.
On the first floor above the hall and beyond it to-
the west is the long gallery now used as a museum,
and west again of this is a small bedroom completely
panelled in lyth-century oak and furnished with
some very fine carved oak, part of which came from
the hall, and part was brought here in recent years.
It also contains some good tapestry of about the same-
date.
The west wing is mainly occupied by the servants'
quarters, and the space corresponding to the staircase
on the east is taken up by a room formerly used as a
chapel.
The entrance to the park, quite close to the house
on the west, is by means of a monumental arch, in a
range of 18th-century stabling. The house contains
a number of good paintings by Vandyke, Reynolds,
Kneller, &c., and collections of Egyptian antiquities,
fossils, and illuminated manuscripts. Historically it
is interesting as the abode of the exiled French court
from iSloto 1814, when its accommodation seems
to have been severely tested, as some 140 persons
were crowded into it and the outbuildings.
Louis XVIII used the library as his reception-room,
and the study and an adjoining room as his private
apartments. The Prince and Princess de Condi
inhabited and slept in the drawing-room, and the.
Duke and Duchess d'Angoulgme in the upper floor
of the east wing. During the residence of the court
the queen died, and the room over the library was
fitted up for her lying in state. An interesting relic
of this part of the history of the house is the confes-
sional of the royal family in the room used by them
as a chapel, and there are also pictures of the king
and the Prince de Conde, the missal and lectern of
the Archbishop of Toulouse, &c., and the names then
given to the rooms are still to be seen painted over the
bells, 'The King's Room,' 'The Queen's Room,*
' The Archbishop's Room,' and so forth.
Alwin, a thegn of King Edward, held
M4NOR the most important part of the township of
HARTWELL? After the Norman Con-
quest this manor was granted to William Peverel, and
in the Domesday Survey it was assessed at 6 hides and
3 virgates of land.6 It belonged to the honour of
Peverel of Nottingham, which came into the hands of
the Crown shortly after the accession of Henry II.*
In 1086 William Peverel had sub-infeudated Tekel
with this manor.7 At the close of the I2th century
Walter de Hertwell held one knight's fee of the
honour of Peverel.8 He died before 1205, in which
year Barnabas son of Walter gave the king 40 marks to-
have seisin of the knight's fee9 in Hartwell, which had
belonged to his father Walter de Hertwell.10 Bar-
nabas probably died before 1229, when Walter de
Hertwell paid a fine to be quit of military service
across the seas, due from his lands." He also paid
scutage in 1234." Soon after this he was succeeded
by William de Hertwell, who, however, died before
1247." In 1254 his heir was still a minor14 in the
wardship of Ralph son of Nicholas, and was presumably
the William son of William de Hertwell who held
< V.C.H. Bucks, i, 2533.
6 Ibid.
6 Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 245* ;
Pipe R. 2, 3 & 4 Hen. II (Rec. Com.), 39.
' y.C.H. Buck,, i, 2533.
8 Red Bk. ofExch. (Rolls Ser.), 109.
9 Rot. de Finibus (Rec. Com.), 292.
10 Little Hampden was included in this
fee. See Little Hampden, and Feud. Aids,
'. 97-
294
11 Cat. Close, 1227-31, p. 220.
u Testa dsNe-vill (Rec. Com.), 258(2.
13 Cal. of Inj. p.m. Hen. Ill, no.
116.
14 Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31.
HARTWELL HOUSE : ENTRANCE PORCH ON NORTH FRONT
HARTWELL HOUSE : THE TAPESTRY ROOM
295
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
the manor in 1271." This William granted the
manor to a sub-tenant in that year,16 and his de-
scendants probably became the mesne lords of the
manor. The de Lutons, the new demesne lords,
held it of successive Hertwells,17 the last mention of
them being in 1645.™ In 1271 '" William de Luton
and Alice his mother, who may have been a daughter
of William de Hertwell the elder,19* were joint grantees
of the manor ; William is mentioned as holding it in
1273*° and Alice in 1280." The two are mentioned
as joint tenants in the same reign." William de
Luton appears in 1286 in a conveyance of land in
Hertwell,'3 but Alice de Luton was seised of one
knight's fee at her death in or before 1 294." Her son
only lived till the next year, his heir Thomas being a
minor.86 Beatrix his widow held land in Hartwell as
part of her dower/6 and also had custody of Thomas's
lands until he came of age in 1 300." A settlement
was made in 1325, by which Thomas de Luton and
Margery his wife were to hold the manor for their lives,
with remainder to their son Nicholas and Joan his wife
and the heirs of his body, and then with remainder
to the right heirs of Nicholas.85 Nicholas had already
been granted 6 messuages and 3 virgates of land belong-
ing to the manor.89 Thomas and Margery both had
died before 1 346,30 and Nicholas held the manor of
Hartwell until l359-6o.31 He was succeeded by his
son Robert who died circa 1391 leaving a boy of twelve
as his heir.3* This boy was the last of the Lutons.
He apparently died before coming of age, and the
manor passed to the descendants of his sister Eleanor.33
Her daughter Agnes was the heiress of the Lutons
and married Sir Thomas Shingleton. Agnes also had
an only daughter Elizabeth, who married Richard
Hampden of Great Kimble." After the death of
Sir Thomas Shingleton his widow married again
— Petite, and on her death in 1480 was succeeded by
her grandson William Hampden." Hartwell Manor
was held by Thomas,35 Jerome,37 Michael,3* and
Alexander Hampden in turn.39 On the death of
Alexander in 1618—19 the manor passed to Thomas
Lee, sen., of East Claydon, his kinsman.40 The Lees
of Hartwell held the manor without interruption "
until the death of the Rev. Sir George Lee, bart., in
1827." Under his will the manor passed to the
descendants of William Lee, Lord Chief Justice of
England, the second son of Sir Thomas Lee, bart.,
who died in 1 690. The grandson of the Lord Chief
Justice died without direct heirs, having taken the
name of Antonie instead of Lee.43 John Fiott the
son of his second sister Harriet, under the wills of his
uncle William Lee Antonie and of Sir George Lee,
succeeded to the estates of the Lee family, taking the
name of Lee.
John Lee left no children, and his estates passed to
his brother, the Rev. Nicholas Fiott, who then took
the name of Lee. He died in 1858" and was
succeeded by his son Lee Percyvale, who, however,
died in the same year, the next heir being his brother,
Colonel Edward Lee, the present lord of the manor.
LEE. Azure two bars
or •with a bend cheeky or
and gules over all.
FIOTT. Azure a cheve-
ron between three lozen-
ges or 'with an anchor
sable on the cheveron.
The service by which the manor of Hartwell was
held was complicated by the grant from the Hert-
wells to the Lutons.
The former held by military service of the honour
of Peverel, performing, for Hartwell and Little
Hampden, the service due from one knight's fee.45
This service was afterwards performed directly to
the lord of the honour of Peverel by the Lutons,46
who held the manor of the Hertwells by a nominal
yearly rent of one clove gillyflower.47 This rent was
mentioned so late as I645-48
The double service seems to have given rise to
some confusion with regard to the overlordships, the
Lutons and their successors being sometimes described
as holding of the king in chief as of the honour of
Peverel, and at other times as holding of the Hert-
wells.49
The manor of Hartwell did suit to the court of
the honour of Peverel.50 The bailiffs of the honour
held the pleas of replevin, the view of frankpledge,
and also had the return of writs within the manor.
« Feet of F. Bucks. East. 55 Hen. III.
" Ibid.
V Chan. Inq. p.m. 33 Edw. Ill (2nd
nos.), no. 104 ; Exch. Inq. p.m. bdle.
1 6, no. 7; Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), xlv,
no. 43.
19 Ibid. (Ser. 2), Misc. dcccvii, 21
Chas. I, pt. 32 (101).
" Feet of F. Bucks. East. 55 Hen. III.
19a Visitation of Bucks. 1566 (ed. Met-
calfe), 1 6.
20 Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. I Edw. I.
M Cal. Pat. 1272-81, p. 418 ; Feud.
Aids, i, 75.
33 Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 44.
38 Feet of F. Bucks. East. 14 Edw. I.
M Chan. Inq. p.m. 22 Edw. I, no. 17.
25 Ibid. 23 Edw. I, no. 20.
*> Cal. Close, 1288-96, p. 463.
W Cal. Gen. (Rolls Ser.), ii, 614.
88 Cal. Pat. 1324-7, p. 133; Abbrev.
Rot. Orig. (Rec. Com.), ii, 289 ; Feet of
F. Bucks. Mich. 19 Edw. II, no. n.
39 Ibid. Mich. 19 Edw. I, no. 10.
80 Chan. Inq. p.m. 20 Edw. Ill (ist
nos.), no. 29 ; Feud. Aids, i, 122.
•l Chan. Inq. p.m. 33 Edw. Ill (2nd
nos.), no. 104.
83 Ibid. 15 Ric. II, no. i.
"Harl.MS. 5867, Visit. of Bucks. 1566.
Sir Robert Luton
Eleanor = Thos. Stokes
Thos. Shingleton = Agnes = — Petite
Elizabeth = Ric. Hampden
William Hampden
*» Ibid.
85 Chan. Inq. p.m. 19 Edw. IV, no. 34.
88 Exch. Inq. p.m. bdle. 16, no. 7.
87 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), xlv, no. 43 ;
ibid. Ixiii, no. i.
88 Feet of F. Div. Cos. Trin. 10 Eliz. ;
Recov. R. Mich. 3 Eliz.
89 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), clvi, no. 3 ;
W. & L. Inq. xiii, no. 117.
296
40 Chan. Inq. p.m. ccclxxvi, no. 96 ;
Recov. R. Trin. 31 Jas. I; Chan. Inq.
p.m. Misc. dcccvii, 21 Chas. I, pt. 32, no.
101.
41 Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. 12 Chas. II ;
Recov. R. Trin. 12 Chas. II; Hil.
I & 2 Jas. II ; East. 23 Geo. II ;
Trin. 29 Geo. Ill ; Mich. 42 Geo. III.
43 G.E.C. Complete Baronetage.
48 Burke, Landed Gentry, 1 906. 44 Ibid.
« Red Bk.of Exch. (Rolls Ser.), 109,^85;
Rot. de Fin. et Oblat. (Rec. Com.), 292.
46 Feud. Aids, i, 75, 113, 122.
4? Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccclxxvi,
no. 96.
48 Ibid. Misc. dcccvii, 21 Chas. I, pt. 32,
no. 101.
49 Ibid. 33 Edw. Ill (2nd nos.), no. 104 ;
Exch. Inq. p.m. bdle. 16, no. 7 ; Chan.
Inq. p.m. xlv, no. 43 ; ibid, clvi, no. 3 ;
W. & L. Inq. xiii, no. 117 ; Chan. Inq.
p.m. (Ser. 2), ccclxxvi, no. 96 ; ibid.
Misc. dcccvii, 21 Chas. I, pt. 32, no. 101.
50 Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31.
STONE HUNDRED
These liberties existed in the time of Henry II, and
practically resulted in the exclusion of the sheriff and
his officers from the manor."
In 1280, however, Alice de Luton obtained the
privilege of freedom from suit to the honour court
for her life for her men whether free or bondsmen.1'
She also was quit both of attendance from the view of
frankpledge at the same court and of the payment of
St. a year for her own view " ; she obtained leave to
hold the assize of ale in her own court and to receive
the fines for trespasses against it.M
In Domesday Book several pieces of land are
mentioned as belonging to Hartwell,5* which were
apparently at some later date severed from the parish.
The manor held by the Hertwell and Luton families
apparently included the whole of the later parish of
Hartwell. In 1254 the fee contained 6i hides, so
that it had varied but little from the assessment in
1086, at 6 hides 3 virgates.56
Besides this land belonging to the honour of
Pcverel, the Bishop of Bayeux held 4 hides in Hart-
well, three of which Helto held of him, while the
fourth was in the hands of Robert."
In the time of King Edward the 3 hides were held
by three sokmen.*8 One, a man of Archbishop
Stigand, held half a hide ; the second, a man of Earl
Leofwine, had 2 hides ; and the third, a man of
Avelin, held half a hide. Avelin, a thegn of King
Edward, himself held the hide given to Robert after
the Conquest." This land presumably passed with
the rest of the Bishop of Bayeux's land to the
Munchesney family and belonged to their barony of
Swanscombe. In 1 302-3 Hugh de Vere, who had
married Dionysia, the heiress of the Munchesneys,
held half a knight's fee in Hartwell.*0 Aymer de
Valence inherited the honour of Swanscombe, and in
1 346 his widow held this half fee." This land may
perhaps be identified with the manor of West Orchard
in the township of Hartwell in the parish of Stone."
Walter de Vernon also held half a hide of land in
Hartwell of the king in chief in 1086. He had suc-
ceeded Turgot, a thegn of King Edward.*1 Another
2 hides were held in chief by William the chamber-
lain, and Robert held them as his sub-tenant. Pre-
viously Wlmar, a priest of King Edward, had held
this land."
The church of THE ASSUMPTION
CHURCH OF OUR LADY is a curious structure,
begun in 1753 and finished in 1755,
the chapter-house of York Minster having been taken
as the source of its design, though the details are
founded on ijth-century work. It consists of an
octagonal nave with a small eastern sanctuary with a
tower above it, balanced by a similar tower set against
the west side of the octagon.
The east window is a very poor thing of five lights,
and there are three-light windows with 15th-century
tracery in the north-west, south-east, north-east, and
south-west faces, with shafted jambs and crocketcd
and finialled labels, all executed in plaster. There
are north and south doors, and the building is further
HARTWELL
lighted by quatrefoiled openings over both doors
and windows. The principal entrance is from
the west, the lowest stage of the tower forming a
porch. Over the inner door, and opening into
the body of the church, is a small gallery serving as
a private pew to the Lee family, who built the
church.
The ceiling is of plaster in the form of elaborate
fan vaulting springing from the internal angles. There
are no fittings in the church of any interest.
Beneath the church is a vault, and over the north
and south doors are two boards bearing painted
inscriptions commemorating those whose remains
were placed there at the building of the church,
having been removed from the old structure, and
many whose bodies have been placed there since.
The earliest names recorded are those of Sir Alexander
Hampden, buried in 1617, and Dame Elizabeth
Hampden his widow, buried in 1675. Amongst
others also recorded are Sir Richard Ingoldsby of
Waldridge, Buckinghamshire, buried 1685, and his
wife Dame Elizabeth Ingoldsby, who was also the
widow of Thomas Lee of Hartwell. Sir Thomas
Lee, bait., son of Sir Thomas Lee of Dinton, 1 690, and
many more of the same family, notably Sir William
Lee, kt., Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench, died
1754, who contributed £1,000 towards the cost of the
church.
The tower contains three bells, the treble by
Richard Chandler, 1691, the second by Warner,
1906, and the tenor is inscribed R. S., Esq., 1715.***
The first book of the registers contains baptisms and
burials from 1550 to 1741 and marriages from 1553
to 1743. This book also contains the burials in
woollen from 1678 and also an interesting list of the
inhabitants of the parish in 1730. The second book
contains baptisms and burials from 1742 to 1812, and
there is a MS. marriage book containing entries from
1754 to 1812.
The church of the Assumption of
JDfOIfSON the Virgin Mary," in the parish of
Hartwell, is a rectory, the chapel of
Little Hampden being appendant to it until 1892.
The separation took place by Order in Council,
dated 28 June 1892, and by a second Order, dated
1 8 August in the same year, the rectory of Hartwell
and the vicarage of Stone were united.66 The advow-
son has apparently always been held by the lords of
the manor. The Lutons in the 1 4th century made
a settlement of the manor and advowson," and from
them it passed successively fo the Hampdens** and
the Lees.6* Some time before the Reformation an
acre of land was given in Hartwell to provide a light ;.
it was worth %d. a year in the 1 6th century.70
Louis XVIII, King of France,
CHARITIES who resided at Hartwell House for
several years during the French Wars,
forwarded to Sir George Lee, bart., £ too to be applied
for the benefit of the poor of the parishes of Hartwell
and Stone. The gift is represented by £ 1 17 consols,
with the official trustees. The dividends amounting
" Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31.
•» Cat. Pat. 1*71-81, p. + 18.
"Ibid.
" Ibid.
" y.C.H. Bucla. i, 234*.
«• Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 3 I.
•7 V.C.H. Bucla. i, 2 34*.
"Ibid.
» Ibid.
•» fW. Aidi, i, 97.
" Ibi). 112.
•' See Stone.
" V.C.H. Bucki. i, 265*.
« Ibid. 266*.
•••See Cocka, Cb. Bill, of Bub,
4J7-
297
" De Banco R. Chart. Enr. Trio. 15
Hen. VIII, m. I d.
" From inform, aupplied bjr Rev. J.
L. Challia, vicar of Stone.
« Feet of F. Buck*. Mich. 19 Edw. II.
n Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), clvi, no. 3..
• P.R.O. Intl. Bki. 1662, 1802.
7* Chant. Cert. Buck*. 5, no. i.
38
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
to £2 1 8s. \d. are distributed at Christmas in sums
•of 2s. 6J. to 6s. to widows and labourers.
'Dr. Lee's Charity' consists of £112 13*. 4<£
consols, with the official trustees, bequeathed, 1868,
.by will of Cecilia, wife of the late John Lee, LL.D.,
of Hartwell House. The dividends amounting to
£2 l6s. ifd. are, under a declaration of trust, 1889,
applied by the rector and churchwardens for the
benefit of the poor not in receipt of parochial relief,
usually in the distribution of coals.
GREAT KIMBLE
Chenebella (xi cent.) ; Kenebell (xiii cent.) ; Magna
Kynebell (xiii cent.) ; Magna Kymbell (xvi cent.).
The parish of Great Kimble lies on the north-
western slope of the Chiltern Hills and stretches
down to the Vale of Aylesbury in the north. In the
upland part of the parish the subsoil is chalk l and the
surface soil chalk and flints. In the Vale the subsoil
is Upper Greensand and Gault ' and the surface soil is
stiff clay. The farms in this part of the parish mainly
consist of pasture lands, 1,015 acres being laid down,
in all, in permanent grass. There are, however,
I,oi9f acres of arable land in the parish.*
The highest point in the hills is the camp in Pulpit
Wood, which reaches the height of 8 1 3 ft. above the
GREAT KIMBLE : FIFTEENTH-CENTURY BUILDING
USED AS A BARN
ordnance datum, while Kimblewick in the northern
part of the parish is less than 300 ft. above it.4 A
brook connecting with the moat at Grange Farm runs
northwards to Bonny Brook in Little Kimble parish.
The latter brook also passes through Marsh, a hamlet
in the north of Great Kimble parish. The road from
High Wycombe to Aylesbury runs through the village
of Great Kimble and at this part of its route follows the
Upper Icknield Way. The Lower Icknield Way also
runs through the parish. The nearest station is at
Little Kimble, on the Aylesbury branch of the Great
Western Railway.
There are two hamlets in the parish, Kimblewick
and Marsh. On Pulpit Hill is an ancient camp and
there are entrenchments and a mound
to the north of the church, close to the
churchyard boundary. There is a moat
at Grange Farm near Great Kimble vil-
lage, and at Marsh a large moat remains,
but the house or buildings which it once
surrounded have disappeared.
Near the church to the north-west
is a large I jth-century wooden struc-
ture now used as a barn, but possibly
once the church house. It is covered
externally with weather boarding, but
this is comparatively modern and any
windows which may have been in the
walls have disappeared. The roof,
however, is fairly complete, and its
moulded and embattled timbers are too
elaborate to have belonged merely to
a barn. It is of iteep pitch, supported
by a number of more or less restored
principals with moulded tie-beams,
purlins, braces, &c.
The parish of Great Kimble, to-
gether with Ellesborough and Little
Kimble, was inclosed under an Act of
Parliament of 43 George III ; the in-
closure award was dated 2 May 1805.*
In 1885 all the parish of Little
Kimble and part of Little Hampden
were united with Great Kimble parish.
The area of the present civil parish of
Great and Little Kimble is 3,415 acres,6
but in 1831 the old parish of Great
Kimble was returned as containing 2,570
acres.7
In the time of Edward
MANORS the Confessor, Sired, one
of the king's thegns, held
GREAT KIMBLE,* but after the Nor-
man Conquest it formed part of the
broad lands granted to Walter Giftard.9
NOW
. Bucks, i, Geological Map.
* Ibid.
8 Inf. from Bd. of Agric. (1905).
4 Ord. Surv.
6 Common Inclosure A'wards,
' Ord. Surv.
< Pof. Ret. 1831, i, 26.
» f.C.H. Backs, i, 247*.
'Ibid.
298
STONE HUNDRED
Walter also held 2 hides of land in Hart well, which
may perhaps have later become part of the parish of
Great Kimble." They were granted to the same
sub-tenant, Hugh de Bolebec, so that such a trans-
ference seems possible, since no land in Hartwell
appears to have belonged to Walter Giffard's descen-
dants." The 2 hides had not, however, been added
to Great Kimble in 1254, when it was said to con-
tain 20 hide;," the same assessment having been made
in the Domesday Survey."
Walter Giffard was made Earl of Buckingham,"
and his lands formed the honour of Giffard, of which
Crendon, in the hundred of Ashendon, was the head
in England." On the death of the second earl, Walter
Giffard, in 1 164," the honour came into the hands of
the Crown." It was not divided amongst the de-
scendants of Rohais, daughter of the first earl, until
the reign of Richard I." Her heirs were William
Marshal, Earl of Pembroke, and Richard de Clare,
Earl of Hertford." Crendon went to the Clares, but
Great Kimble formed part of the Marshals' moiety."
In 1254 the overlordship of the three knights' fees in
Kimble was held by Simon de Montfort, Earl of
Leicester," in dower, together with his wife Eleanor,
the widow of the second William Marshal, Earl of Pem-
broke." On the death of the last Earl Marshal with-
out children, Great Kimble was assigned to Eva de
Braose, one of his sisters and co-heiresses.** Eleanor
outlived Eva, but in 1275 the escheator was ordered
to deliver her purparty to the heirs of Eva, who were
Roger Mortimer and his wife Maud, Eudo la Zouche
and his wife Milicent, John de Hastings and Humphrey
de Bohun.14 None of these heirs, however, seem to
have obtained the overlordship of the fees in Kimble,
and in 1284-6 it was held in chief by Gilbert de
Clare, Earl of Gloucester," inheriting them from
Isabel, another sister of the Earl of Pembroke." Thus
Great Kimble was united with the other moiety of
the honour of Giffard, of which Crendon was the
head.
In the 1 4th century these fees seem to have been
claimed by Aymer de Valence, Earl of Pembroke."
He had inherited the lands of the Munchesney family,"
and Warine de Munchesney had married Joan, one of
the five sisters of William Marshal, Earl of Pembroke."
Aymer had thus a claim equal to that of Eva de
Braose and the Earl of Gloucester to the three fees in
Kimble, but they do not seem to have been divided,
since in 1403 Edmund Earl of Stafford is said defi-
nitely to hold three knights' fees.*0 In spite of this
Aymer de Valence," his co-heiress Elizabeth Comyn,
and her husband Richard Talbot," and their son
Gilbert, are all said to have held knights' fees in
Kimble.**
GREAT KIMBLE
Walter Giffard sub-infeoffed Hugh de Bolebec of
his land in Great Kimble " Hugh was succeeded by
his son, another Hugh, who confirmed various grants
made by sub-tenants to the abbey of Missenden,** and
in 1 166 he held twenty knights' fees of the honour of
Giffard." He was succeeded by Walter de Bolebec."
The latter died before 1 190-1, leaving only daughters.
One of these, Isabella, was in the wardship of Aubrey
de Vere, Earl of Oxford.** She married his eldest
son Robert, and became Countess of Oxford in his
right.1* Early in the I3th century she held the
mesne overlordship of three knights' fees in Great
Kimble,4* which was inherited by her son,4' and was-
held by the de Veres until the
abolition of feudal tenures."
In 1631 Robert de Vere, Earl
of Oxford, died seised as over-
lord of three knights' fees, his
lands passing to his son and
heir Aubrey."
The chief sub-tenant in
Great Kimble under Hugh de
Bolebec early in the I zth cen-
tury appears to have been
Giffard Palefridus of Kimble.
He granted the church of
Great Kimble44 to the abbey
of Missenden shortly after
its foundation in 1133," with a virgate of land
and meadow. His son, William Giffard, or William
son of Giffard de Kimble, confirmed this grant,46
and his grandson Richard Giffard made additional
grants." Hugh de Kimble, presumably the son.
of Richard Giffard, died about 1205-6, when a re-
grant of the wardship of his heir was made to Adam
de Essex.48 John son of Hugh de Kimble made large
grants in the parish to the abbey and to various
members of his family.4* His mother Amice married
Geoffrey Crok, and they obtained from John a grant
in fee for the yearly rent of *</. of one-third of one
knight's fee, and one ' yoke ' of land " in Kimble. This
must have been the land that hitherto Amice had held
in dower for life, and since she would be entitled to
dower in one-third of her husband's whole estate, he
must have held one knight's fee in demesne during
his life. John de Kimble seems to have left no sons
at his death, since shortly after the grant to Geoffrey
Crok, the tenants of the three fees were Emma and
Maud, who may have been his daughters and heiresses."
From this time the land was held by tenants in
demesne in three knights' fees. The Abbot of Mis-
senden held one of these," obtained mainly from
alienations made by Giffard Palefridus and his suc-
cessors and tenants. The other two were in the
Vitt, Earl of Olford.
Quarterly gu'fi and or
with a motet argent in the
quarter.
«> V .C.H. ButkM. i, 147*.
"Ibid.
>> Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, ji.
« V.C.H. Bucki. i, 247*-
14 G.E.C. Comflett Peerage.
" Cart. Antiq. (P.R.O.), S. 19.
" G.E.C. Comflett Peerage.
V Red Bk. ofExck. (Roll. Ser.), 37.
u G.E.C. Complete Peerage.
»• Cart. Antiq. (P.R.O.), S. 19.
Ibid.
Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31.
Cal. if Clou, 1271-9, p. 190.
Ibid. " Ibid.
FcuJ. A'sdi, i, 75.
G.E.C. Comflett Pierage.
17 Chan. Inq. p.m. 17 Edw. II, no. 7;.
• Cf. Dinton.
• De Banco R. 434, m. 308.
w Chan. Inq. p.m. 4 Hen. IV, no. 41.
u Ibid. 17 Edw. II, no. 7$.
nCal. of Clou, 1323-7, pp. 173-4 1
Chan. Inq. p.m. 10 Ric. II, no. 51.
u Ibid. 7 Hen. V, no. 68.
•* y.CM. Buck,, i, 247*.
u HarL MS. 3688.
« Red Bk. ofExtk. (Roll. Ser.), 311.
*! Ibid. 54, 71.
» Ibid. 71.
" Ibid. 138 | Bxctrfttt t Rot. Fin. (Rec.
Com.), i, 75.
• Teita dt Nevill (Rec. Com.), 247.
41 Cal. of Chit, 1271-9, p. 190 ; Feud.
Aid,, i, 75.
299
41 Ibid, i, ill; Chan. Inq. p.m. 10
Ric. II, no. 38 ; ibid. 38 & 39 Hen. VI,.
no. 39 ; Ezch. Inq. p.m. bdle. 15, no. 1 1 ;
Feet of F. Bucki. Eait. 26 Eliz.
a Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccccUiiii
no. 15.
44 HarL MS. 3688.
« y.C.H. Buck,, i, 369*.
"Harl. MS. 3688.
V Ibid.
41 Rat. dt Fin. tt Oklat. (Rec. Com.),
318.
« HarL MS. 3688.
*° Feet of F. Buck*. 12 Hen. Ill, no.
26.
*Hund.R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31.
*• Feud. Aid,, i, 75.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
MISSKNDEN ABBEY.
Barry -wavy ermine and
sable 'with a crosier or
bendivise.
hands of Walter de Upton and Robert Fitz Neel,63
who may possibly have obtained them by marriage
with the descendants of John son of Hugh de Kimble.
In 1254 the Abbot of Missenden was said to hold
4 hides of land in Great Kimble of the gift of
John de Westhull." The
charter of John de Westhull
is given in the Missenden
cartulary, but the abbey only
obtained some of its lands in
Great Kimble from this bene-
factor." In 1284 the abbot
held one fee in Great Kimble
of the Earl of Oxford,66 and
in 1330 in an extent of the
possessions of the abbey this
land is called the manor of
Great Kimble.67 After the dis-
solution of Missenden Abbey,
the manor of Great Kimble
was granted in 1541 to Michael Dormer, with all
the lands belonging to the abbey in Great and Little
Kimble.58 The Dormers held the manor until
1579-80, when William Dormer sold the reversion
to Griffith Hampden.59 William Hampden died
seised of this manor,60 and it passed to his descendants
with Uptons Manor (q.v.).
In the 1 3th century FENEL'S GROPE or
WHITINGHJM'S MJNOR was held by the family
of Fitz Neel, but it is not clear how they became
possessed of it.
In a charter granting land to Missenden Abbey in
the time of Henry II, Richard Fitz Neel is mentioned
.as a previous donor of land to
the abbey,61 and Hugh de
Bolebec in a charter confirm-
ing the alienation of the church
•calls him 'his man.'61 Robert
Fitz Neel witnessed various
•charters to the abbey in the
reign of Henry III,6* and held
•one knight's fee in Great
Kimble in 1 2 84-6." He had
a. son named Walter, who
held land in Great Kimble.65
Robert Fitz Neel held the
\
FITZ NZKL.
argent and gufes.
Tal
•Of
fee in 1302-3 and I3I6,66 and must presumably
have been his son or grandson. Robert Fitz Neel
died before 1345, leaving an only daughter, Grace,
the wife of Sir John Nowers.67 She held the
fee in I346,68 but died in 1350, and John son
of John de Nowers was her heir, at that time
•still a minor.69 He, however, released the manor to
King Edward III, and Sir Ingelram de Couci, Earl of
Bedford, who had married the king's eldest daughter
Isabella or Elizabeth.70 The earl had come to Eng-
land as one of the hostages for King John of France,
but had risen to great favour with Edward III. On
the accession of Richard II he resigned his earldom
to the king and gave up all his English land on retir-
ing to France.71 His wife, however, remained in
England, and held the manor till her death, which
took place before 1382." Richard II then granted
the manor to Queen Anne for her life.73
Henry IV apparently granted it to Queen Joan,
who held it in dower in 1425." He granted the
reversion of the manor to his second son John Duke
of Bedford, and the grant was confirmed by Henry V,
the manor to remain to the duke and the heirs of his
body.75 On the death of the duke in 1435," the
manor passed to his nephew and heir Henry VI,77 one-
third being held in dower by Jaquetta of Luxembourg,
the widow of Bedford.78 The king in 1439 sold the
manor, which at this time was known by the name of
Fenel's Grove, to Cardinal Beaufort, Bishop of
Winchester, to hold for the rent of id. a year.79
The same year the bishop sold it to Robert Whit-
ingham, Squire of the Household, and servant of
Henry VI.60 Various confirmations of this grant
were obtained from the king.81 Whitingham was
succeeded by Sir Robert Whitingham, his son, who
was attainted on the accession of Edward IV, and
forfeited his lands.81 John Verney and his wife
Margery, the daughter and heiress of Sir Robert,63
attempted to recover Fenel's Grove as part of her
inheritance.84 Although their son, Sir Ralph Verney,
was said to be the overlord of the manor in 1 5 1 6,85
it seems very improbable that the Verneys ever re-
covered possession. In 1499 Richard Whitingham
was in seisin,86 and a long lawsuit ensued between
him and Richard Empson, John Danvers, Thomas
Hasilwode, John Dey, and William Wodward ;
Empson and the other plaintiffs appear to have re-
covered seisin of the manor of Fenel's Grove or
Whitingham's Manor in Great Kimble, after the pro-
ceedings had lasted for four years.87 On Empson's
attainder after the death of Henry VII, the ' manor
of Kimble ' was granted to Thomas Parre and Matilda
his wife for life.88 The estates of his father were,
however, restored to Thomas Empson by Act of
Parliament,89 and he recovered the manor of Fenel's
Grove amongst them. In 1538 he sold it to Michael
Dormer, Alderman of London,90 who died seised in
I545.91 Geoffrey Dormer sold the manor in 1555
to William Serjeant.9* Richard Serjeant was the
eldest son and heir of William at the latter's death in
68 See Uptons Manor and Fenel's Grove.
M Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31.
« Harl. MS. 3688.
* Feud. Aids, i, 75.
'7 Harl. MS. 3688.
" L. and t. Hen. VIII, rri, 379 (iz).
69 Anct. D. (P.R.O.), A. 6019 ; Feet
of F. Bucks. HiL 22 Eliz.
60 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccxlviii, no.
39-
" Harl. MS. 3688.
M Ibid. <* Ibid.
M Feud. Aids, i, 75.
85 Harl. MS. 3688.
66 Feud. Aids, i, 96, 113.
87 Chan. Inq. p.m. 5 Edw. Ill (ist
cos.), no. 75 ; ibid. 23 Edw. Ill (pt. i),
no. 85.
88 Feud. Aids, i, 122.
89 Chan. Inq. p.m. 23 Edw. Ill (pt. i),
no. 85 ; Cal. Pat. 1348-50, p. 413.
Robert the eldest ion of Grace, on whom
the land was settled by Robert Fitz Neel,
was unable to manage his lands, having
been hit on the head with a lance at cer-
tain jousts. He apparently had died be-
fore 1350.
70 Anct. D. (P.R.O.), A. 387.
71 G.E.C. Comf/ete Peerage.
7" Cal. Pat. 1381-5, p. 203.
7* Ibid. 203, 529.
7< Chart. R. 3 & 4 Hen. V, no. a.
» Ibid.
7« G.E.C. Complete Peerage.
77 Par!. R. (Rec. Com.), vi, 317.
7s Cal. Pat. 1436-41, pp. 260, 520.
300
7» Parl. A vi, 3 1 7.
80 Ibid. 81 ibid. »« Ibid.
88 See Dinton.
84 Parl. R. (Rec. Com.), vi, 317.
85 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), Ixxvii, no.
123.
88 De Banco R. Mich. 15 Hen. VII,
m. 310, 361.
"7 Ibid. Hil. 19 Hen. VII, m. 21 ;
Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 15 Hen. VII j
ibid. Mich. 19 Hen. VII.
88 Pat. 2 Hen. VIII, pt. I, m. 8.
89 Diet. Nat. Biog. xvii, 365.
90 Close, 30 Hen. VIII, pt. 2, no. 16.
91 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), Ixxiii, no.
10.
83 Feet of F. Bucks. East. I & 2 Phil,
and Mary.
STONE HUNDRED
1 562," but four years later William Serjeant, sen.,
held Fenel's Grove.*4 He alienated parts of the
manor during his life — a third to John Stampe and
Isabel his wife in I 594—5," and two-thirds to his son
William and his wife Elizabeth." This William,
however, seems to have held the whole manor, but
alienated it in 1626 to Edward Symeon and others.*7
These were probably trustees for some settlement
made by John Hampden, who married Elizabeth, the
daughter and heiress of Edward Symeon.** Four years
later William Serjeant died seised of lands and tene-
ments in Great and Little Kimble, but not of this
manor." By 1653 it was held by Richard Hampden,
the son of John Hampden the patriot ;IO° he also held
the other manors in Great Kimble, and the manor
of Fenel's Grove from this time was held with Uptons
Manor (q.v.).
In 1284 Walter de Upton held his fee, afterwards
known as UPTONS MANOR, in Great Kimble 101
alone, but in 1302-3 he held it jointly with Hugh
the Marshal,1™ and the manor apparently was divided
from this time ; but whether Hugh was a tenant of
Walter de Upton, or whether they both held of the
Earls of Oxford, does not appear.
Walter de Upton died between 1316 and i^^6,m
and John de Upton his heir died in his lifetime,
leaving a daughter Joan,104 whose husband Roger
Blome held the fee in 1 346.101 His son John Blome
died in 1 349, but according to the inquisition made
on his death, he only held lands and tenements in
Great Kimble of the Earl of Oxford.10* His daughter
and heiress Matilda l07 married William Noble.108 She
died in 1377,"" and William held her lands till his
death,"0 when they passed to the descendants of Amice,
sister of John de Upton,1" who had married one
of the Hampdens of Great Hampden. The Uptons*
land in Great Kimble descended to her great-grandson
John Hampden.11' Richard, the eldest son of John
Hampden, married Elizabeth Shingleton, the heiress of
the Lutons, and thus obtained the manor of Hartwell,1'1
and in consequence the land in Great Kimble passed
to his younger brother Thomas, who died seised of
the 'manor of Great Kimble' in 1485.'" Richard
Hampden, his son and heir, held the manor, and also
died seised in 1527, leaving two daughters, Ethelreda
or Audrey and Sybil."* The manor of Great Kimble
was left to the elder daughter Audrey, who had first
married William Hampden of Dunton, a member of
another branch of the family, and secondly Griffin
Richards."* The latter held the manor for life with
succession to Audrey and her heirs by William Hamp-
den, her late husband.117 This settlement was made
1537."* John Hampden, the second son of
GREAT KIMBLE
Audrey, inherited the Kimble estates, and died
seised of the manor in 1558."' The Hampdens held
the manor until 1725-6, when Richard Hampden of
Great Hampden, having incurred debts to the Crown,
was, under Act of Parliament, forced to sell his four
manors in Great Kimble, Uptons being the principal
manor.110 The trustees sold them in 1730 by public
auction to Sarah, Dowager Duchess of Marlborough,
who left the manor of Great Kimble by will to her
grandson John Spencer.1" His son John Spencer,
first Earl Spencer, succeeded him, but sold it in 1803
to a Mr. Richford, who conveyed it the same year to
Scrope Bernard, afterwards Sir Scrope Bernard Mor-
land, but."* The latter held it at his death in 1830,
but it was shortly sold to Sir George Russell, bart.,m
and at the present day it is in the hands of the
ASTLEY. Awirt a
(inyuefoil ermine in a bor
der engrailed or.
ROIIILL. Argent »
lion gulei and a chief tabli
vfitk three rout argent
therein.
in
" Chan. Inq. p.m. (Scr. z), cmiv, no.
189.
•' Feet of F. Buck* Hil. 37 Elii. i
E nt. 41 Elii.
•Mbid. Bucki. Hil. 37 Elii.
* Ibid. Eait. 43 Elii.
•7 Ibid. Coi. Undef. Eait. 2 Chat. I.
" Out. Nat. Biof. zxiv, 254.
•* Chan. Inq. p.m. (Scr. z), ccclvi, no.
49-
00 Recov. R. Mich. 1653.
101 Feud. Aids, i, 75.
"> Ibid, i, 96.
101 Ibid, i, 1 13, izz.
104 Chan. Inq. p.m. 1 1 Hen. IV, no. 1 3.
"• Feud. Aidi, i, i zz.
"• Chan. Inq. p.m. 31 Edw. Ill (itt
ooi.}, no. 4Z.
FlANtLAND. A~ure
a dolphin or and a chief
or with two sail: res gules
therein.
trustees of his descendant, Mr. Henry Frankland-
Russell-Astley, a minor."4
Ralph the Marshal held the manor of MARSHALS
in Great Kimble in 1290,"* and in 1302-3 Hugh
the Marshal appears as a sub-tenant of part of the fee
that Walter de Uptone had previously answered for
alone.1" In 1 346 his land had passed to Thomas
Marshal.117 Sir Michael Dormer held the manor of
Marshals in the 1 6th century, and on his death in
w Ibid.
«• Ibid, ii Hen. IV, no. 13.
»»» Ibid.
110 Ibid. i$ Ric, II (pt. i), no. 50.
111 Ibid. 1 1 Hen. IV, no. 1 3.
ut The exact deicent it difficult to
trace. In the Hampden pedigree (Lipt-
comb. Hist, of Bucks, ii, 302), Amice ii
•aid to have married Richard Hampden,
younger ion of Sir Reginald Hampden.
In an inquitition (Chan. Inq. p.m. 1 1 Hen.
IV, no. 13), howerer, made in 1409, the
it laid to be the mother of Richard
Hampden ; her hutband mutt in thit cate
have been Reginald Hampden. The wife
of the latter in the pedigree quoted above
wat Nicola, daughter of John Grcnville,
301
but he may quite poiiibljr hare had two
wivet.
"» See Hartwell.
ll< Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. z), i, no. 1 54.
111 Eich. Inq. p.m. bdle. zc, no. 1 1.
»• Ibid.
W Feet of F. Bucki. Trin. and Mich.
Z9 Hen. VIII.
"» Ibid.
•" Kxch. Inq. p.m. bdle. ci, no. zi.
>» Prir. Act of Parl. I z Ceo. I.
111 Lytont, M ana Brit, i, 588.
«• Ibid.
*" Sheahan, Hiit. and Tofog. of Bucks.
"' Burke, Landed Gentry, 1906.
'« Feet of F. Bucki. Eait. ig Edw. I.
"• Feud. Aidi, i, 96.
W Ibid. 111.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
1545 it passed to his son Thomas.118 Godfrey Dormer
held it in I558,1*9 but probably his son William
Dormer sold the reversion in 1579-80 to Griffith
Hampden, who died seised of the manor.130 On the
death of William Hampden, the son of Griffith, he
was found to be seised of a capital messuage m or
farm in Kimble called Marshals, which was probably
the manor of Marshals. This had been acquired by
purchase from William Dormer by an indenture dated
25 January 1579-80. From this time the manor
passed with the manor of Uptons (q.v.).138
The view of frankpledge in Great Kimble was held
by the chief overlords. The bailiffs of the honour of
Giffard held two views in Great Kimble,'83 this right
being preserved by the Dukes of Buckingham till the
1 5th century.131 On the forfeiture of their land,
Henry VIII gave these courts to Edward, Prince of
Wales, who held the view of frankpledge about
I548.»>
The lords of the honour held other important
regalia. Their bailiffs held the pleas of replevin and
their tenants paid no hidage to the king, nor did
they do suit to the shire and hundred courts.136
In the 1 3th century John son of Hugh de
Kimble granted his mill in Great Kimble to Gilbert
Martel,1" who in turn granted it to the abbey of
Missenden."8 Gilbert Martel held the mill and its
appurtenances for homage and service and l Ib. of
pepper paid yearly at Michaelmas, for all services, ex-
cept the foreign service due to the king from two
acres of land.139 The abbot held as a sub-tenant of
Martel, paying 6d. a year for the mill and all the land
belonging to it.140
The church of ST. NICHOLAS
CHURCH consists of a chancel 26ft. 6 in. by
1 5 ft. 3 in. with north and south chancel
aisles 8 ft. and 6 ft. 5 in. wide respectively ; a nave
5 2 ft. 6 in. by 1 9 ft. with north and south aisles 6 ft.
and 5 ft. 5 in. wide respectively ; a western tower
I oft. loin, square and a south porch, all measure-
ments being internal. The early history of the
church has been much obscured by recent drastic
restorations, but sufficient remains to show that the
aisles were added about the middle of the 1 3th century,
at which time the nave was of the same size as at
present. The old chancel has, however, completely
disappeared, and the present chancel arch belongs to
the early years of the 1 4th century.
At about the same time the tower was added,
while the aisles of the chancel were built somewhat
later in the I4th century. In the 1 5th century the
clearstory was added, while in modern times the south
aisle, tower, and chancel arcading have been practi-
cally rebuilt, the external surface renewed, and
much new material inserted throughout.
The east window of the chancel is modern and of
three trefoiled lights with cusped circular lights over
and shafted jambs. On the north are two bays of
arcading of 14th-century detail with obtuse two-
centred arches of two hollow chamfered orders. The
column is of four half-round shafts with round fillets
between with circular capitals and bases, while the
responds have half-octagonal corbel capitals with
carved heads. Such old work as remains in the
arcade is of mid- 14th-century date. There is a
similar arcade of two bays on the south, but of slightly
different detail and not quite as much renewed.
The chancel arch is of two wave-moulded orders
with a modern label to the west and responds of
three half-round shafts with moulded capitals and
bases.
The north aisle of the chancel is lit by three
modern windows of 13th-century type, a single lancet
to the east and double and triple lancets on the
north. At the west is a modern arch to the north
aisle of the nave.
The south chancel aisle is used as a chapel and is also
lit by three modern windows, that to the east being a
single lancet with an elaborately moulded rear arch.
The two on the south are double lancets, and that
to the east has a modern piscina drain in its sill.
Between these two windows is a small modern door,
and there is an arch to the nave aisle similar to that
on the north.
The nave is of four bays, and both arcades are of
the same detail and date. The arches are two-
centred and of two orders with plain and hollow
chamfers, both orders being stopped at the springing.
The columns are octagonal with excellently moulded
capitals and bases on square plinths. Above the
arcade and on a level with the sills of the clearstory
windows are a series of small plain corbels, the
supports of a former roof. The clearstory windows,
three on either side, are on the north single trefoiled
lights of 15th-century date ; those on the south are
modern and of two cinquefoiled lights. The tower
arch is of three chamfered orders, the innermost
resting on carved corbels, the outer pair dying into
plain square responds.
The north aisle of the nave has on the north three
windows, each of two trefoiled lights under a square
head. The east and west of the three windows are
of late 14th-century date much restored, but the
middle one has hardly an old stone remaining.
Between the pair to the west is the north door, much
restored, and with plain chamfered head and jambs.
The west window is a modern lancet.
The south aisle has three modern windows to the
south, each of two cinquefoiled lights with square
heads and quatrefoiled spandrels, while the west
window is a much restored 13th-century lancet.
The south door, between the westernmost pair of
windows, is modern and of two chamfered orders.
The south porch is also modern, with an entrance
similar to the south doorway and small east and west
windows of two cinquefoiled lights with a sixfoil
over.
The tower is of three stages, and has been largely
rebuilt. The embattled parapet is completely
modern, and below it is a plain 14th-century corbel
table. The belfry openings, much restored if not
quite modern, are of two trefoiled lights with a blind
quatrefoil over. The west door is also modern or
completely restored, and is of 14th-century detail,
while the west window is of 15th-century date and
two cinquefoiled lights.
The font is of the common local type, of late I zth-
century date with a circular scalloped bowl and.
128 Chan. Inq. p.m.(Ser.2), Ixxiii, no. 10.
1M Recov. R. Trin. 4 & 5 Phil, and
Mary.
180 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Scr. z), ccxxxii,
no. 67 ; Anct. D. (P.R.O.), A. 6019.
181 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccxlviii,
no. 39. 18a Ibid.
188 Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31.
134 Chan. Inq. p.m. 38 & 39 Hen. VI,
no. 39.
302
I"5 Ct. R. (P.R.O.), ptfo. 155, no. 13.
186 Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31.
W Harl. MS. 3688.
"8 Ibid. 18» Ibid.
"° Ibid.
STONE HUNDRED
square scalloped base, the stem being moulded and
the rim and base of the bowl richly ornamented with
foliage.
The nave roof is of 15th-century date, low in
pitch, and of the king-post type with cusped tracery
in the spandrels. The other roofs are practically
modern. There is a I jth-century altar table and a
good chest (in the vestry) with mediaeval ironwork.
The modern fittings of the chancel are good. A
curious and unusual feature is the use of Doulton
ware for the reading-desk and low chancel screen.
The tower contains a ring of six bells, the treble
and second cast by G. Mean in 1860, the third and
fourth by Henry Knight in 1587, and inscribed re-
spectively, ' Gloria in Excelsis Deo,' and ' Ave Maria
Gracia Plena.' The fifth and tenor were cast by
Mears & Stainbank in 1897.
The communion plate is modern. The first book
of the registers contains all entries from 1701,
baptisms and burials running to 1 802, and marriages
to 1754. Marriages are continued in a separate
book from 1754 to 1812, and baptisms and burials
in a third book from 1803 to 1812.
The church of Great Kimble was
JDfOirSON granted by Giffard Palefridus in the
1 2th century to the abbot and con-
vent of Missenden.1" The grant was confirmed some
LITTLE KIMBLE
years later by Hugh de Bolebec, the mesne lord of the
fee, at the request of three of his men, Hugh of
Kimble, Richard Fitz Ncel, and Humphrey de
Kimble."* In this confirmation the grant is of
the church of St. Nicholas of Kimble, the invoca-
tion being the same as at the present day. The
rectory was impropriated and the vicarage was
ordained before or during the episcopate of Hugh
of Wells (I209-34)."1 After the Dissolution, the
rectory and advowson of the church were granted
to Sir Richard Dormer with the manor belonging to
Missenden Abbey."4
William Dormer sold the reversion of the rectory
and advowson and the appendant tithes in 1579-80
to Griffith Hampden,10 and the owners of the Great
Hampden estates have held them till the present day,"*
the Earl of Buckinghamshire being the patron of the
living.
There is a small mission church at Marsh.
The Poor's Land consists of
CHARITIES 4 a. o r. 1 3 p. in the parish of Elles-
borough, and an allotment in Box
Field containing 3 r. 14 p. awarded under the Inclo-
sure Act, 1803. In 1905 the sum of £5 9/. id. was
received as rent, of which / 4 \s. 6d. was distributed
in bread to thirteen recipients, and £i \i. 8</. in
money to seven widows.
LITTLE KIMBLE
Chenebelle (xi cent.) ; Parva Kynbelle (xiv cent.) ;
Little Kymbell (xv cent.).
The parish of Little Kimble lies on the north-
western face of the Chiltern Hills. The hills are
well wooded. There is a small lake in the grounds
of Ladymede House, out of which runs a stream
called Bonny Brook. It flows to the north through
Little Kimble village to the hamlet of Marsh.
The height of the land varies between 300 ft. and
500 ft. above the ordnance datum.1 The subsoil in
the hills is Chalk, and in the lower lands Upper
Greensand. The occupation of the people is entirely
agricultural ; arable and pasture farming is carried on,
234 acres being arable land and 311 acres permanent
grass.' The village lies on the road from High Wy-
combe to Aylesbury, and there is a railway station
to the south of the village on the Great Western
Railway. The parish was inclosed under an Act
of Parliament for inclosing the common fields of
Great and Little Kimble and Ellesborough. The
award was given on 2 May 1805.'
Little Kimble has now been amalgamated with
Great Kimble parish, by a Local Government Order of
25 March 1885.
In the time of King Edward the Con-
M4NQRS fessor one of hit thegns named Brictric
held the manor of LITTLE KIMBLE.*
After the Norman Conquest, however, it was granted
to Turstin son of Rolf, who held it at the time of
the Domesday Survey.' For more than a century
the name of the lord of the manor is completely lost,
but presumably in the 1 2th century it was held by
James de Newmarket, who died before 1215, leav-
ing two daughters and heiresses, Isabel and Hawisia.*
Of these, Isabel was married to Ralph Russel, whose
father, John Russel, had custody of her father's lands,7
and Hawisia, first to John de Botreaux " and secondly
to Nicholas de Mods.' Both the Russels and the
de Moels claimed the overlordship of Little Kimble,
and it is impossible to disentangle their respective
shares of the inheritance. Early in the I3th century
Ralph Russel was overlord of half a knight's fee in
Little Kimble, held of ' the heir and fee of [Hard]wyk,*
and another half fee there also belonged to Hardwick.10
In 1284-6 James Russel held the overlordship of
part of Little Kimble jointly with Roger de Moels,
and, together with the townships of Hardwick and
Wedon, it formed one fee."
On his death, Robert Russel, the son of the Ralph
Russel already mentioned, was found to have held the
overlordship of the manor of Little Kimble, which
was reckoned as one fee, apart from Hardwick." In
1 302-3 William, brother and heir of Robert Russel,
with John de Moels, held the three townships as one
fee, Little Kimble being held in demesne by a sub-
tenant, according to the inquisition made for Cottes-
low Hundred," but under the hundred of Stone he
appears to have been the overlord of one fee in Little
Kimble alone." In 1 346 Edmund Russel held this
fee ;" he was the son of a Robert Russel, and died
111 H»rU MS. 3688.
"« Ibid.
»«• f.C.H. Buck. !, 184, n. i.
»« L. and P. Htn. Vlll, ivi, 379 (12).
»«• Anct. D. (P.R.O.), A. 6019.
«• See Gt. Hampden; P.R.O. In«t Bkt.
1660; 1663, 1677, 1683, 1751, 1785.
In 1708 the Sub-dean of Lincoln pre-
sented.
1 Ord. SUIT.
' Inf. from Bd. of Agric. (190$).
* Common fitcloiure Avt&rdi.
« r.C.H. Bueki. i, i67a. • Ibid.
' Rot. Lit. Clou. (Rec. Com.), i, 134*.
303
7 Ibid. 348*, 648*.
• Ibid. 348*. »Ibid. 6*3*.
» Ttiu di Nevitt (Rec. Com.), 245*.
« f,ud. Aidi, i, 78.
11 Chan. Inq. p.m. 15 Edw. I, no. z8.
" F,ud. AiJt, i, 101.
>< Ibid. 96. "Ibid. in.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
leaving no direct heirs." The descendants of his
sister Sybil claimed some of his lands in Notting-
hamshire, but neither they nor the descendants of
William Russel seem to have laid any claim to Little
Kimble.17 In 1486, however, a manor in Litt'.e
Kimble was said to be held of the heirs of Edmund
Russel.18
The Moels rarely claimed the whole of Little
Kimble. In 12 84-6 "and 1302-3 Roger de Moels
and John de Moels *° were joint overlords with the
Russels. John de Moels died seised before 1310 of
half the hamlet of Kimble ; " his grandson, however,
another John, held the overlordship of one knight's
fee in Kimble at the time of his death." He left two
daughters, the elder of whom inherited Little Kimble
in 1338." She was the wife of Sir Thomas Courte-
nay," and their daughter and heiress Muriel married
John Dinham.15 Shortly after this the sub-tenancy of
part of Little Kimble appears to have lapsed, and thus
ooo
MOELS. Argent two
bars gules •with three
roundels gules in the chief.
/„.
DINHAM. Gules a
ise indented ermine.
the Dinhams, who succeeded the Moels, became the
tenants in demesne of their manor.
Sir John Dinham died in 1457—8 seised of the
manors of Eythorpe, Crendwell, and Little Kimble,
held of Edward, Prince of Wales, as of the honour of
Wallingford, by right of inheritance of Joan his wife,
who survived him.16 His wife was the heiress of the
Darches family," who had held the two first-named
manors, and probably part of Little Kimble,29 as sub-
tenants, but presumably Sir John's right in the manor
came also through his great-grandmother, Muriel de
Moels.
He was succeeded by his son John, Lord Dinham,
who died leaving his four sisters and their children as
his heirs.*9 In the inquisition on his lands, however,
he was said to be seised only of tenements in Little
Kimble,10 but his heirs afterwards appear to have held
portions of the manor. These heirs were his sisters,
Lady Elizabeth Fitzwarren, a widow, who afterwards
married Sir Thomas Brandon, and Lady Joan Zouche,
and his nephews, Sir Edmund Carew and Sir John
Arundel, sons of his sisters Margaret and Katherine
respectively." Elizabeth died seised of a fourth part
of the manor in 1516, leaving John Bouchier as her
son and heir.31 Lord Zouche and his wife Anne also
held a fourth part in 1 53 1,33 and one of the co-
parceners apparently sold a share to Sir William
Compton.84 His grandson Henry, Lord Compton,
conveyed this to Ralph Redman, William Hawtrey,
and Richard Hollyman,35 who very shortly afterwards
acquired the share of the Arundels as well.36
Nothing more is known of the manor for the next
hundred years, but at the close of the iyth century it
was apparently held by the family of Gibson. In
1692 there was a lawsuit between Thomas Gibson,
sen., and others v. Richard Croke concerning rights
of free warren in Little Kimble. It was asserted on
this occasion that Croke was lord of the manor, and
that it had belonged to his father before him.37 The
manor here referred to is probably Bulbecks (q.v.),
but the suit would seem to show that the Gibsons
already had some interest in the parish, and in 1696
Thomas Gibson, sen., and his wife Mary, and Thomas
Gibson, jun., and his wife Frances, appear in a
deed concerning tenements in Little Kimble and a
court-leet and view of frankpledge to be held within
the manor of Little Kimble.*8 Thomas Gibson, jun.,
apparently left no male heirs, and the manor passed
to Mary and Elizabeth Gibson, who held it in I739.39
Elizabeth apparently married Thomas Hill and held
a moiety of the manor in 1767,'° and Mary married
Robert Smith." They held the manor jointly
in 1771," but after their death their property was
divided. In 1817 a moiety of the manor was held
by Sir James Fellowes and his wife Elizabeth in her
right/3
In 1086 a sub-tenant named Albert held Little
Kimble of Turstin son of Rolf." Very shortly after
its acquisition by the Russels and the de Moels, Hum-
phrey le Dun appears as the sub-tenant of a knight's
fee in Little Kimble. Half of this he held in demesne
and half as a mesne lord.45 He paid scutage, however,
for the whole fee in I235-46 He died before 1246,*'
and left an only daughter Margaret, who was a minor
in the king's wardship.48 In 1254 John le Waleys
held Little Kimble, having probably acquired it by
marriage with the heiress of Humphrey le Dun.4'
John died between 1283 and I289,60 leaving four
heiresses by his wife Margery and a son John by another
wife.61 Little Kimble was divided among the daugh-
ters,6* so that it seems certain that it was the inheri-
tance of their mother, who may thus be identified as
the daughter of Humphrey le Dun. Of her daughters,
Isabel married Simon de St. Lys, Agnes married John
de Middleton, Lucy married Adam de Kyngesham (or
Kyngesmede), and the fourth daughter married John
du Park.6* Adam de Kyngesham appears to have
16 De Banco R. 517, m. 299.
W Ibid.
18 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), luciii, no. 47.
» Feud. Aids, i, 78.
*> Ibid. 101.
11 Chan. Inq. p.m. 3 Edw. II, no. 36.
M Ibid, ii Edw. Ill (ist not.), no. 56.
» Ibid.
« Ibid.
85 G.E.C. Complete Peerage.
46 Chan. Inq. p.m. 36 Hen. VI, no. 39.
* G.E.C. Complete Peerage.
88 Chan. Inq. p.m. 18 Edw. II, no. 18;
ibid. 2 Ric. II, no. 57 ; Assize R. 1458,
m. 26 d.
29 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), XT, no. 58.
» Ibid.
81 Ibid.
*a Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), xxxi, no.
21.
88 Feet of F. Div. Cos. Trin.
23 Hen. VIII.
84 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), Ixxiii, no. 9.
85 Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. 18 Eliz.
88 Ibid. Hil. 19 Eliz.
" Exch. Dep. by Com. East. 3 Will,
and Maty, no. II.
88 Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. 7 Will. Ill ;
ibid. East. 4 Anne.
89 Ibid. Trin. 13 Geo. II.
40 Ibid. 7 Geo. III.
41 Ibid. East. 1 1 Geo. III.
304
« Ibid.
48 Ibid. Div. Cos. Trin. 57 Geo. III.
« y.C.H. Bucks. \, 267,1.
48 Testa di Ne-vill (Rec. Com.), 245.
« Ibid. 259.
4' Excerpt. cRot. Fin. (Rec. Com.), 1,454.
48 Assize R. 56, m. 21.
49 Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31.
60 Cal. of Inq . p.m. Hen. Ill, no. 673 ;
Abbrev. Plac. (Rec. Com.), 281-2 ; CaL
of Close, 1279-88, p. 241.
" Abbrev. Plac. (Rec. Com.), 281-2.
" Feet of F. Div. Cos. East. 17 Edw. I ;.
Chan. Inq. p.m. 25 Edw. I, no. 28 ; Feud.
Aids, i, 96.
» Abbrev. Plac. (Rec. Com.), 281-2.
STONE HUNDRED
answered for the whole manor in matters of feudal
incidence.*4 His wife Lucy, after his death, probably
married Walter de Shobintone,** who also answered
for the whole fee in 1316.** In 1346 the tenants of
the half fee that Humphrey le Dun and John de
Waleys had held in demesne were Simon de St. Lys, a
minor in the king's wardship, Richard da Park, and
John de Middleton, the descendants of the four
heiresses of John le Waleys." Some years later, how-
ever, Nicholas Darches claimed a third of the manor
of Little Kimble from John atte Morhalle and John de
St. Lys, the latter being apparently the heir of Simon
de St. Lys." The exact claim of Nicholas is not given
in the pleadings, but he recovered seisin of the tene-
ments in question.** The history of the sub-tenants
of Little Kimble cannot be traced from this time,
owing probably to the subdivision of land among the
descendants of the co-heiresses of John le Waleys.
Haifa knight's fee called BULBECKS MJNOR
in Little Kimble was held by the Bolebec family,
under the mesne lords of the whole fee.*0 Herbert
de Bolebec granted land in the parish to the abbey of
Mi-isen Jen in the 1 2th century," and after his death
his widow Alice succeeded him as the tenant of the
half fee." In a charter Gilbert is named as her son
and heir,6* but in 1254 another Herbert held the land.*4
At his death, which took place before 1 266, he held the
manor of Kimble and onecarucateoflanj there, which
passed to Gilbert his brother and heir.*6 The latter
died before 1 298," leaving a son named Henry."
In 1 346 John de Bolebec and his tenants'* held
the manor, and he also con-
firmed the grants to Missen-
den made by his ancestors."
During the i;th century the
Hampdens obtained posses-
sion of the manor. Edmund
Hampden, the second son of
F.dmund Hampden of Great
I lampJcn," forfeited his lands
to Edward IV, amongst them
being a messuage, 60 acres of
land, 6 acres of wood, and
8 acres of meadow in Little
Kimble, but the manor was probably held by the
elder branch of the family, and so was not forfeited
to the Yorkist king."
Thomas Hampden of Great Hampden died seised of
the manor at the close of the I 5th century. He was
succeeded by his son " and grandson, both named
John ; the latter left two daughters, and Little Kimble
passed to Barbara the second." She married first
Edmund Smith, by whom she had a daughter
Anne,74 the wife of William Paulet." Philippa,
LITTLE KIMBLK
the widow of the second John Hampden, married,
as her second husband, Sir Thomas Smyth, and in
1554 they quit-claimed the manor of Little Kimble
to William Paulet and his wife." Elizabeth Paulet,
their only daughter and heiress, married Oliver St.
John.77 The manor was sold by St. John in 1609
to Robert Waller,1' who again sold it to Edward Ser-
jeant for £1,850.™ The manor changed hands again
in 1626, when Richard Serjeant is said to have sold it,
under the name of ' Buli-ccks Manor,' to Richard
Brasey of Thame, co. Oxon.* The latter in his will,
proved in 1647, left the yearly revenue from lands
and wood and tenements in Little Kimb'.e to his wife
for her life. After her death they were to pass to
Richard Croke, the son of Anne, the daughter of the tes-
tator, for life, and to descend to his children." Richard
Croke and his son, another Richard, both held the
manor," which descended on the death of the latter
to his daughter Charlotte. She married William
Ledwell," and they held the manor of Little Kimble
in 1758.** The property passed on his death to
his heir-at-law, — Ledwell of Cowley, co. Oxon.** In
1792 William Bridges Ledwell, his son, held the
manor,** and sold it to Scrope Bernard, after-
wards Sir Scrope Bernard Morland, bait.87 The
manor was presumably bought at the same time
as Great Kimble by Sir George Russell, bart., and is
now in the hands of the trustees of Mr. Henry Frank-
land-Russel!-Astlcy, a minor.**
In 1254 John le Waleys and Herbert de Bolebec
held the view of frankpledge in their manors/*
In 1617 James I granted to Edward Brudenell the
right to hold a view of frankpleJge twice a year in
Stoke Mandeville, Ellesborough, and Little Kimble,*
but in the i8th century a court leet and view were
claimed by the Gibsons."
The church of ALL SAINTS is a
CHURCH small structure consisting of a chancel
1 8 ft. 6 in. by 1 4 ft., a nave 38 ft. 9 in.
by 1 5 ft. 4 in., and north and south porches, the latter
of which is used as a vestry. Until the middle of
the 1 3th century the church consisted of a chancel
narrower than the present one, and a nave of the same
size as that now existing, but at this date the present
chancel arch was inserted unsymmetrically and the-
chancel widened by rebuilding the south wall. It is
thus probable that the nave walls and the western half
at least of the north wall of the chancel are ot
13th-century date or earlier.
The chancel has also been lengthened, but this may
have been done at a later date than the I 3th century.
At the beginning and middle of the 1 4th century
windows were inserted in the walls of nave and
chancel, and the porches were added, while in modern
*« FruJ. AiJi, i, 96.
» Feet of F. DIT. Cot. Mich. 7 Edw. II)
Chan. Inq. p.m. n Edw. HI (lit noi.),
no. 56 ; Ctl. Pat. 1517-50, p. 189.
*• t'fuJ. AUi, i, 1 1 J.
" Ibid. lia.
*• Ai«itc R. 1458, m. 16 d.
» Ibid.
» Tnu di Ntvill (Rec. Com), 1+5*.
•> Harl. MS. )688.
"» Ibid. ; Tata di Nevill (Rec. Com.),
« Harl. MS. 3688.
"Hu*d. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31.
« Col. if 1*1. f.m. Hn. Ill, no. 673.
"Col. Chit, 1296-1301, p. 147.
WAnct. D. (P.R.O.), C. 1509.
** FtuJ. jli.li, i, in.
" Harl. MS. 368*.
"° Lipicom b, Hiit. of Butkt. ii, 301.
71 Cat. Pat. 1461-7, p. 473.
"Chan. Inq. p.m. (Srr 2), iiiii, no.
47-
'•Lipicomb, Hill, tf Biuki. ii, 301.
W Ibid.
" Feet of F. Dir. Col. Mich. I 4 *
Phil, and Miry.
» Ibid.
"CIoie, 10 Jaa, I, pt. 1 8, DO. 36.
* Feet of F. Di». Cot. Trin. 6 Jis. L
1609.
" Clote, 10 Jai. I, pt. 1 8, no. 36.
305
•" I.ipicomb, Hill, if Buckt. ii, 351.
"P.C.C. WiU. 156, Fine*.
" Eich. Dep. bjr Com. Eait. 3 Will
and Mary, no. n.
" Lipicomb, Hiti. of Biuki. ii, 351.
* F«t of F. Dir. Cot. Hil. 31 Geo. II.
•* Lipicomb, ///if. of Buck, ii, 3(1.
* Recov. R. Eait. 3* Geo. III.
" Feet of F. Bucki. Hil. 31 Geo III.
" See Great Kimble.
»H*nd. R (Rec. Com), i, 31.
*°Pat. 14 Jai. I, pt. i.
« Feet of F. Bucka. Trin. 7 Will. Ill ;
Eait. 4 Anne ; Trin. 7 Geo. Ill ; Eait.
1 1 Geo. Ill | Di». Coi. Trio. 57 Geo.
III.
39
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
times the south and east walls of the chancel have
been either rebuilt or modernized and the stone
bell-cot on the west gable of the nave has been
added.
The east window of the chancel is modern, of three
lights and early 14th-century detail. In the north
wall of the chancel are two windows. The first, of
two lights and early 14th-century date, is curiously
crude in worlmanship. The lights are trefoiled and
have a roi^gh cusped circle over them, while the
whole head of the window including the label, a very
flat roll, is worked out of one thin stone or flag.
The second window, probably of the same date as the
first, is a plain uncusped chamfered lancet set low in
the wall without an external rebate, the lower part of
which has been fitted with a shutter, the hinges
remaining. The only window on the south of the
chancel is a single-light modern window of 14th-cen-
tury detail. The chancel arch is two-centred and of
two chamfered orders with half-octagonal responds
and moulded capitals and bases, and is set to the south
of the axis of the nave.
The north wall of the nave contains two windows
east of the north porch of the same date and detail as
the two-light window on the north of the chancel,
but their heads are not worked in single stones. The
north door is either quite modern or completely
restored, and is of two continuous moulded orders with
a label of 14th-century detail. West of the door is a
small plain lancet of doubtful date. In the south wall
are two two-light windows in corresponding positions
to those on the north, but of late 14th-century date,
with square heads and cinqucfoiled lights with curious
cusped flowing tracery. Below the sill of the eastern-
most of these windows is a small piscina with an
uncusped two-centred head moulded with a filleted
bowtell and hollows. The south door is of the same
detail as the north and of 14th-century date. To
the west is a window of two uncusped lights under a
square head of simple and late detail. The west
window of the nave is of early 14th-century date and
has three cinquefoiled lights with quatrefoils over.
The font has a large round tub-shaped bowl probably
of 12th-century date.
The porches are both of the 1 4th century,
though considerably restored, and have outer arch-
ways continuously moulded in two orders with a
hollow between.
The seating of the church is modern, but a pulpit
and reading desk have been worked up out of lyth-
century carved panels. On the walls of the nave are
the remains of a series of interesting 14th-century
paintings. On the west wall are traces of figure
subjects, now quite defaced. On the north wall,
beginning from the west, is a figure of Christ, some
4 ft. high, remarkably well drawn in a dull red line.
Above and to the right of this is part of a judge-
ment scene with souls in torment. Near the north
door is a life-size figure much defaced and partly
obscured by a wall tablet. Between the two eastern-
most of the windows on this side is a large figure of
St. George, with the remains of a scroll bearing his
name below, represented in mail, with shield, sword,
and lance. The splays of these two windows are also
decorated with paintings. In the east splay of the
easternmost window is a drawing of St. Francis
preaching to the birds, while the remains of various
male and female figures are visible in the other splays.
On the south wall is a cowled figure holding a book
(about three-quarters life-size) and a smaller painting
of two angels laying a saint, perhaps St. Katherine, in a
tomb. In the chancel floor are set some very fine late
13th-century tiles, with subjects from the mediaeval
romances : a king on his throne, a man giving a
book to a woman, a knight charging, a knight
cleaving the helm of his adversary, and a lady holding
a squirrel.
There are a few fragments of old glass in the win-
dows, the quartered arms of France and England being
in the north-east window of the nave.
The modern stone gable bell-cot contains two bells
re-cast from older ones by James Warner and Sons in
1875.
The church plate consists of a covered cup of 1570
of the usual Elizabethan pattern, a salver hall-marked
for 1827, and a pewter flagon.
The first book of the registers contains baptisms
from 1675 to 1735, burials from 1658 to 1712, and
marriages from 1657 to 1702. The second book
contains baptisms from 1726 to 1782, burials from
1726 to 1780, and marriages from 1727 to 1775,
with further notes of banns to 1783. A third book
has baptisms between 1783 and 1812 and burials
between 1784 and 1811, while a fourth book contains
marriages from 1786 to 1812.
The church of All Saints91 in
Little Kimble was given to the
abbey of St. Albans by Humphrey
de Kimble early in the 1 3th century.93 His charter
was confirmed by Alice de Bolebec,94 who died before
1254." No vicarage seems ever to have been
ordained, and in the valuation of churches made in
1535 Henry Champyn appears as rector of Little
Kimble.96 Henry VIII granted the advowson of the
rectory to John Cokk and Sir Michael Dormer,97 the
latter of whom already held the lands in the parish
that had belonged to St. Albans.98 Afterwards the
advowson appears to have been recovered by the lord
of the manor. Lipscomb99 mentions a presentation
by Edward Serjeant in 1620, but the advowson is
not mentioned in the numerous sales of the manor in
the 1 7th century. The Crokes, however, presented
twice to the rectory, Richard in 1 66 1 and Martha
Croke (widow) in i66^.m In 1689 Elizabeth
Chapman presented ln and the advowson was held by
the family of Chapman for many years.101 William
Chapman in 1788 los and Samuel Chapman in 1810
held the living on their own presentation.104 The
rectory of Little Kimble is now consolidated with
the vicarage of Great Kimble and the right of presen-
tation has since the consolidation been held by the
Earl of Buckinghamshire.
In 1327 Walter de Shobinton and his wife Lucy
alienated a messuage, mill, and pond, together with
land and rent in Little Kimble and Aston Ivinghoe, to
a chaplain to celebrate divine service in the church
w Cal. Pat. 1327-30, p. 189.
•» Lansd. MS. 375.
M Ibid.
•» Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31.
46 Valor Eccl. (Rec. Com.), iv, 249.
ijt (l), 1035
W L, and f. Hen.
(97).
88 Ibid, xiv, 379 (12).
mHist. of Buck, ii, 353.
w> P.R.O. Intt. Bks. 1661, 1665
306
101 Ibid. 1689.
10" Ibid. 1723, 1725, 1737, 174.1,
'744-
los Ibid. 1788.
l" Ibid. 1 8 10.
STONE HUNDRED
STONE
of Little Kimble for the souls of Walter and Lucy,
their ancestors and successors.101
A chantry in Little Kimble it mentioned in a grant
by Queen Elizabeth, but there is no certificate of its
dissolution under Edward VI.'*1 There is in the
parish a dissenting chapel, which serves for all
denominations.
Under the Inclosure Act, 1803,
CHARITIES an allotment containing i a. z r. 26 p.
was awarded for the use of the poor
in respect of a right of cutting firewood on certain
hills. The land produces about £3 a year, which is
applied in the distribution of two to three hundred
weights of coal to about twenty recipients.
STONE
Stanes (xi cent.).
The parish of Stone lies completely in the Vale of
Aylesbury. It is well watered by the River Thame
and its tributaries which flow through the Vale.
There is a spring at Sedrup hamlet. The subsoil is
Kimmeridge Clay, Portland beds, London beds, and
Gault,1 and the surface soil is loam and sand. There
it excellent pasture-land to the extent of 1,504 acres,
and 892 acres are arable land.' Market gardening
and poultry and duck-breeding are carried on by the
inhabitants.
The small village of Stone stands on the highest
ground in the parish, 368 ft. above the sea-level, at a
point where the high road from Thame to Aylesbury
is crossed by a small road which runs from Eythorp
to Bishopstone. The church is close to the cross-roads,
standing on a mound which may be partly artificial,
and the houses of the village are grouped round it.
The most conspicuous building is the County Asylum,
west of the village, with its large modern red-brick
and stone buildings facing the main road. It was built
in 1852, and has since been enlarged. There is not
much timber in the parish, what there is being chiefly
on the high ground on which the main road runs.
Pevcrel Court, south-east of the village, is a modern
house built in 1862. The nearest station is at Ayles-
bury, 3 miles away.
The parish was inclosed under an Act of Parlia-
ment for the imlosurc of Stone and Hartwell, the
award being dated 19 March 1777.' The area of
the parish it 2,641 acres.'
Various Anglo-Saxon remains have been found
here, the most important being a bronze-g It brooch
of unusual size.'
Two successive vicars of Stone were men of some
eminence. Joseph Bancroft Reade (1801-70) held
the living from 1839 to 1859, when he was presented
to the vicarage of Ellesborough. He was distinguished
as a chemist, microscopist, and a photographic dis-
coverer, and at the time of his death was president
of the Royal Microscopical Society.' James Booth
(1806-78) was presented to the vicarage in 1859.
He was treasurer and chairman of the Society of
Arts, and was mainly instrumental in establishing its
system of examinations.7
The township of Stone was held in
MANORS two portions before the Norman Con-
quest, and the same division was con-
tinued for several centuries. One-half had been held
by Ulf, a housecarl of King Edward,' but at the
time of the Domesday Survey it was held by Robert
de Todeni, the lord of Belvoir,* Leicestershire, and
was assessed at 7 hides of land.10 The overlordship
of this part of Stone belonged to the lords of the
honour of Belvoir for many centuries."
Before 1086, Robert de Todeni had granted
BRACERS MA"i\OR in Stone to a sub-tenant named
Gilbert." During the reign of Henry I, William de
Bracey granted the church of Stone to the abbey of
Oseney,11 and was in all probability holding the manor
as one knight's fee of the honour of Belvoir. Gilbert,
his heir, confirmed this grant and afterwards gave
I hide of land in addition to the abbey." Charters
also are given in the Oseney Cartulary of Robert de
Bracey and Gilbert his son.1*
Early in the 1 3th century this Gilbert held seven-
eighths of a knight's fee in Stone,18 but before 1286
he had been succeeded by Roger de Bracey." Robert
de Bracey in 1316 " and John de Bracey" in 1346
held it in turn, but before 1402 Bracey's Manor in
Stone was held by John Glover of Little Kimble,"
who probably held it in right of his wife." In 1415,
however, John Barton, sen., held a knight's fee in
Stone by Aylesbury of Lord Ros of Hamelake."
Andrew Sparlyng, presumably holding as a trustee
for the widow of John Barton, jun., sold the manor
to Sir Robert Whitingham.13 After the downfall of
the Lancastrian cause, his lands were forfeited and
granted by Edward IV to Sir Thomas Montgomery.**
Sir Ralph Verney, whose son John had married
Margery Whitingham, Sir Robert's heiress, nude
every effort " to recover her lands for his son. He
was successful as far as Bracey's Manor was concerned,1*
and Sir Ralph Verney, jun., the son of Margery
Whitingham," his son (another Sir Ralph) and two
grandsons, both Edmund by name, were seised in
turn.1* Edmund Verney, jun., sold the manor to Sit
Alexander Hampden," and on his eath in 1619 it
passed by settlement to the Lees," and from that
time followed the descent of the manor of Hartwell.
104 Cal. Pai. 1317-30, p. 189.
»« Pat. 31 Eliz. pt. 5.
> y.C.H. Buck,, i. Geological Map.
• Inf. from lid. of Agric. (1905).
• Com. Intl. Award.
4 Ord. Surr.
• V.C.H. Buck, i, 197.
• Diet. Nat. Biog. xlvii, 360-1.
' Ibid. T, 394-5-
• y.CM. Buckt. i, z$7*.
• Ibid. 113.
>° Ibid. 157*.
M Ct Fiud. Aidt, i, 75, 97, in i Cat.
Clou, 1339-4-9, P- lo6- i Chmn. Inq-
p.m. z Hen. V, no. 40 (file 241) ; ibid.
(Scr. z), cccclxxvi, no. 96.
» y.C.H. Buck,, i, 157*.
uCal. Clou, 1337-9. P- 3741 CoM.
MS. ViL E. IT.
» Ibid.
'• Ibid.
» Tnu di Nrvitt (Rec. Com.), 145 |
Hun<l. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31.
" FnJ. AiJi, i, 75.
« Ibid. 113.
>• Ibid. izz.
» Fret of F. Bucki. Mich. 14 Hen. IV.
" Ibid.
307
" Chan. Inq. p.m. z Hen. V, no. 40 j
Feet of F. Buck*. Bait. 1 5 Hen. VI.
» Early Chan. Proc. bdle. 16, no.
703.
« See Dinton.
* Ibid.
M Esch. Inq. p.m. bdle. 5, no. i ;.
r> Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. z), xliv, no.
91.
" Ibid. Ixxiv, no. z ; ibid. c«, no. 4 ;
Feet of F. Buck*. Hil. 3 Elii.
» Recov. R. Mich. 16 Eli*.
M Chan. Inq. p.m. (Scr. z), ccclxzvi,
no. 96.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
The second part of Stone, known later as ST.
CLERES M4NOR, reckoned at 7 hides in the
Domesday Survey, was held in the time of King
Edward the Confessor as a manor by two brothers,
one a man of Ulf and the other a man of Eddeva,
and they could assign or sell the land as they
pleased." This land, however, was given at the Con-
quest to Odo, Bishop of Bayeux, and was held from
him by Helto, probably the steward of the bishop,
from whom he also held Swanscombe in Kent."
When Odo was deprived of his lands they passed to
the Munchesney family, and the overlordship of this
part of Stone follows the same descent as the manor
of Dinton (q.v.).33 The land in Stone, however, does
not appear amongst the knights' fees held by Aymer
de Valence, Earl of Pembroke, at the time of his
death.34 A certain William Cluppe, however, had
held lands in Stone of the earl."
In the reign of Henry I this manor was probably held
under the Munchesneys by William de St. Clere (or
Sengler), who granted land in Southcote (q.v.) in Stone
parish to Oseney Abbey.*6 Before 1 187 John de St.
Clere appears to have held land in Stone," and a little
later he was said to hold one knight's fee as mesne
lord of the honour of Swanscombe.*8 The heir of
John de St. Clere had succeeded him in 1284—6,"
and in 1302-3 Ralph de St. Clere of Kent held
the overlordship of the fee.40 John de St. Clere,
however, had enfeofFed various sub-tenants to the pre-
judice of his son Hugh. The greater part of this
land41 he granted to Simon de St. Clere, whose son
Gilbert held it in 1219." During the I3th century
William de St. Clere held in demesne 6 hides and half
a virgate of land as three-quarters of a knight's fee.43
He was succeeded by his son or grandson Robert de St.
•Clere,44 who made a settlement of his land in Stone on
Limself and his wife Joan for life with remainder to
his four sons and to John Golye and Joan his wife,
and finally to the right heirs of Robert.45 Robert
died before 1 346, when Joan de St. Clere held his
land in Stone.48 On the death of Joan, the four sons
•of Robert probably held the land in turn, but
Thomas, the youngest, is the only one definitely men-
tioned.4' All these sons, as well as John Golye and
his wife, had died before i^oi,48 leaving no direct
heirs. In that year the right heirs of Robert de St.
Clere, his daughter Amice and the descendants of her
two sisters " tried to recover this inheritance, claiming
under the settlement mentioned above from various
tenants. Of these John Glover and his wife Joan
were the most important, since they also held Bracey's
Manor. The result of the suit cannot be traced, but
the claimants were not successful, since a few years
later John Pigot, the grandson of Amice, again laid
claim to certain lands in Stone, but a second time the
result is not given.60 It seems probable that the
claimant did not get possession of the St. Clere's
lands and that at this time they were held with the
other half of the parish. Sir Robert Whitingham
held the manor of ' Stone called St. Clere's alias
Bracey's,' " a title which suggests that the two were
at this time united. The same designation is given
in the grant to Sir Thomas Montgomery, but in the
struggles of the Verneys to obtain possession of the
forfeited lands of the Whitinghams," St. Cleres
Manor was again separated from Bracey's Manor. In
some way it came to the Crown and Henry VIII
granted it to Sir Anthony Lee, to be held, with
other lands, as one-hundredth part of a knight's fee."
At his death Sir Anthony is said to have held a
moiety of the manor of St. Cleres, but this may only
refer to its separation from Bracey's Manor.54 It was
settled on his widow for life, but before 1553 it had
passed to the Dormers, Sir
Robert Dormer dying seised
of a moiety of the manor of
St. Cleres.15 In 1566 Nicho-
las Harcourt held a moiety of
the manor, which he granted
to Sir William Dormer two
years later." Sir William died
seised of the whole manor of
St. Cleres,47 and the Dormers
held it till 1662-3." I" l^at
year Charles Dormer, Earl of
Carnarvon, sold 2 messuages,
100 acres of land, 10 acres of
meadow, 10 acres of pasture
and common of pasture in Hartwell and Stone to
Sir Thomas Lee, bart.69 This sale may have brought
the greater part of the land belonging to St. Cleres
Manor to the Lees, who held Bracey's Manor in
Stone. St. Cleres Manor is mentioned, however,
in various documents of the late 1 7th and of the
1 8th centuries, as being in the possession of the
Earls of Chesterfield, who inherited the lands of
the Dormers.40 At the time of the inclosure of
the common fields of Stone the Earl of Chesterfield
owned certain tithes in the parish,61 but there do
not appear to have been any manorial rights, which
probably disappeared after the sale of the land in
1662-3. There is now only one manor in Stone,
the names of Bracey's and St. Cleres Manors having
disappeared, and it is held by Colonel Lee of Hartwell.
In Stone Hundred, William son of Constantino
held at the time of the Domesday Survey I virgate
DORMER. Azure ten
billets or and a chief or
•with three martlets atture
therein.
« V.C.H. Bucks, i, 234*.
•« Ibid.
88 Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 24.5,
254; Feud. Aids, i, 75; Anct. Deeds
(P.R.O.), A. 9840 ; Chan. Inq. p.m.
17 Edw. II, no. 75.
84 Ibid.
86 Cal. Close, 1323-7, p. 212.
K Cat. Close, 1337-9, p. 374; Cott.
MS. Vit. E. XT.
W Maitland, Bracton's Note Bit. case 18.
88 Testa de Nevill (Rcc. Com.), 245.
•• Feud. Aids, i, 75.
« Ibid. 97.
11 The other sub-tenanti of John de
St. Clere were William de la Mtrie and
William Blacluton, who held 5^ virgates
of land ai the fourth part of a knight's fee,
which their descendants held as late as
1 346. Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 245 ;
hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 3 1 ; Feud. Aids,
i, 97, 122.
48 Maitland, Bracton's Note Bk. case 18.
48 Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 254 ;
Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31.
4* Feud. Aids, i, 75, 97, 113.
45 Feet of F. Bucks. Mil. 5 Edw. Ill ;
De Banco R. Mich. 3 Hen. IV, m. 517.
46 Feud. Aids, i, 122.
4? De Banco R. Mich. 3 Hen. IV, m.
5'7-
« Ibid.
« Ibid.
M De Banco R. Trin. 8 Hen. IV, m.
332d.
61 Chan. Inq. p.m. 4 Edw. IV, no. 44 ;
308
Cal. Pat. 1461-7, p. 367 ; ibid. 1467-77,
p. 309.
M See Dinton.
" Pat. 37 Hen. VIII, pt. 16, m. 24.
M Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. z), xc, no. 2.
55 Ibid. XCT, no. 5.
M Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 10 & II
Eliz.
•' Chan. Inq. p.m. (Scr. 2), clzz, no. 2.
"Feet of F. Bucks. Hil. 13 & 14
Chas. II.
" Ibid.
w Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 22 Chas. II ;
Recov. R. Trin. 2 Jas. II ; Feet of F.
Div. Cos. Hil. I Will, and Mary ; Recov.
R. Bucks. Hil. 9 Anne ; ibid. East. 3
Geo. I ; ibid. Mich. 7 Geo. IV.
*l Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii, 461.
STONE HUNDRED
STONE
and 6 acres of land in Southcote." This has been
identified with SOUTHCOTE in Stone, though the
name is now lost. Before the Conquest the land be-
longed to Ulvric, a man of Archbishop Stigand."
William son of Constantine had granted the land to
Suetin. The Domesday entry, however, cannot refer
to the whole of Southcote, lince at a later date various
grants were made to Oseney and Missenden Abbeys.*4
In the reign of Henry I William Sengler or
St. Clere gave l messuage with I virgate and 2 acres
of land to Oseney Abbey," and Richard le Palmer
gave I messuage and I virgate of land in Southcote
and Bishopstone to the abbey." In the next reign
land in Southcote teems to have been granted to
Simon de St. Clere with the other land of the family
in Stone." His son Gilbert succeeded him, and in
1254 it wu held by another William de St. Clere."
He held I hide of land which had apparently been
alienated from the serjeanty of Ilmer," but in 1302-3
it is mentioned as part of the serjeanty of the lord
of Ilmer and Aston ; ** the tenants, however, are not
mentioned separately." Lucy de Brinton, the mother
of Simon de St. Clere, held one-sixth of this hide of land
in Southcote, and with the consent of Simon, granted it
to her younger son Ignarius.71 Ignarius granted this
land to Missenden Abbey, and the gift was confirmed
after his death by his nephew Gilbert." The abbot paid
a rent of | Ib. of pepper yearly to the St. Cleres,'4
and when the serjeanty was arrented " he paid 5/." a
year to the Exchequer for I virgate of land. One
virgate of land was also granted to Oseney Abbey,
and the cartulary of the abbey contains a licence
from Henry III for the alienation of the serjeanty."
The last time land is mentioned in Southcote is
in l 546 in the grant of St. Cleres Manor in Stone to
Sir Anthony Lee and John Croke."
The other half-fee called fTEST ORCHARD was
held under the Munchesneys by the family of Cloville
in the I3th century. In 1234 William de Cloville
held half a knight's fee of Warine de Munchesney."
Some years later Savaric de Cloville was the tenant of
2 i hides of land in Stone," but there is no trace of this
land after the reign of Henry III, unless it may be
identified with the manor of We>t Orchard in the
township of Hartwell in the parish of Stone. In
Hartwell, however, the Bishop of Bayeux" held 4 hides
which do not afterwards seem to have belonged to the
parish of Hartwell. Three of these were held by the
same man, Helto, who was the tenant of the bishop's
land in Stone."
In 1 302-3 Hugh de Ver and his tenants held
half a fee in Hariwell pertaining to the barony of
Swanscombe." The barony passed to the Earls of
Pembroke, and Aymer de Valence died seised of
rent in Hartwell and land there.*4 This was assigned
to Mary de St. Paul his widow as part of her dower,**
but it belonged to the purparty of Elizabeth Comyn,
as one of the heirs of Aymer de Valence."
In the 1 5th century Robert Whitingham, who
obtained possession of several manors belonging to the
honour of Swanscombc, held the manor of West
Orchard, and on his attainder the manor was granted
to Sir Thomas Montgomery,*7 and was described as
being in the township of Hartwell and the parish of
Stone. It was granted with the manor of St. Cleres by
Henry VIII and apparently was held with that manor
by the Dormers."
The church of ST. JOHN THE
CHURCH BAPTIST consists of a chancel 376. 9 in.
by I 5 ft. 3 in. ; a modern north organ
chamber ; a nave about 61 ft. long by 19 ft. 9 in. wide ;
a north aisle 6 ft. 8 in. wide ; a north transept 1 2 ft.
by 1 2 ft. 9 in. ; a south transept 1 6 ft. by 18 ft. ; a
south porch, and a western tower 1 1 ft. 8 in. square,
all measurements being internal. In the 1 2th cen-
tury the church seems to have consisted of an aisleless
nave, somewhat shorter than at present, and a chancel,
which must have been of about the same width as
that now existing, but a good deal shorter. About
1 1 70 a north aisle of three bays was added, and in
the first quarter of the 1 3th century the nave and
aisle were carried westward to their present length,
the old respond of the arcade being moved and a
new pillar set up. In the same century the south
transept was added and the chancel was rebuilt to its
present dimensions. The north transept and the
chancel arch belong to the first part of the 14th cen-
tury, and towards the close of this century the tower
was added. In the 1 5th century no additions were
made to the plan, but the nave walls were heightened
and several windows inserted. In modern times the
church has been drastically restored, and no doubt
much evidence of the earlier work destroyed. The
chancel in particular was almost rebuilt in 1843, the
north wall of the aisle rcfaced, and the upper part of
the tower greatly modernized. The organ chamber
and south porch are quite modern.
The chancel is lit on the east by a modern triplet
of lancets, probably reproducing the original arrange-
ment, of which only portions of the relieving arches
remain. On the north are two modern lancets, and
between them the arched entrance to the organ
chamber, which is entirely modern. In the south
wall are three lancets, also modern, but showing
traces of the ancient openings, and between the second
and third is a blocked south door, which retains a
little 13th-century masonry. The east gable has
been rebuilt together with the upper parts of the
•» r.C.H. Bnckt. i, 266*.
" Ibid.
«« Hirl. MS. 3688 ; Hund. R. (Rcc.
Com.), i, 32.
"Ctl. Clm, 1 337-9. P- J74-
" Ibid.
W Harl. MS. 3688.
« IbU.
•* Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, JI } Ttilt
Jt Nrvill (Rtc. Com.), 161.
7* FtmJ. Aidi, i, 9;.
"Ibid, i, 75. In 1184. Robert de
St. Clere was uid to hold half • fee in
Southcote of the heir of John de St. Clere
aod that hair of William de Munchesney
and William of the king in chief. Thia
entry thould apparently refer to Stone and
not Southcote.
•' Harl. MS. 3688.
» Ibid. » Ibid.
•»Hu«d.K. (Rec. Com.), i, 31.
"• The rent of 51. it a mistake for
71. 6<t. Cf. E«ch. L.T.R. Mem. R. 136,
Eaat. 45 Edvr. III.
"Ctl. Clou, 1337-9. p. J745 Cott,
MS. Vit. E. mr.
r" Pat. 37 Hen. VIII, pt. 16, m. 24.
In I'.C.H. Bucks, i, 166, note 9, a reference
to Southcote ia Stone ii given at occurring
in L. tnd P. Hi*, fill, iviii, 490. The
reference to Southcot in that Tolume of
the Letteri and 1'apen thould be L. tnd
309
P. Hn. yill, wiii (2), 449 (51), but it
refers to Southcot in the parish of Linslade,
l hamlet which still exists, and not tc
Southcote in Stone.
1* Ttut di Ntvill (Rec. Com.), 154.
* Huttd. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 31.
•» y.CM. Buck, i, 23+4. « Ibid.
* Ftud. Aidi, i, 97.
M Chan. Inq. p.m. 17 Edw. II, no. 7;.
•* Ctl. Clou, 1313-7, p. 144; Fnd.
yfiWi, i, ill ; Chan. Inq. p.m. 51 Edw.
Ill (ist not.), no. 28.
* Abbnv. Pltc. (Rec. Com.), i, 287 j
Ctl. Pal. i 340-3, p. 200.
1 Ctl. Ptt. 1461-7, pp. 121, 367.
» Pat. 17 Hen. VIlI.pt. i.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
north and south walls, and there are traces of a lower
steep-pitched roof. The chancel arch is of two cham-
fered orders with a defaced label on its western face,
the inner resting on ha'f-octagonal shafts with moulded
capitals and bases; it appears to date from c. 1330.
On the north side of the nave is an arcade of
four bays, the three eastern of which, c. 1170, have
semicircular arches of two square orders, with square
capitals and circular columns. The abaci are moulded
with a hollow between two rolls, and the capitals,
which are shallow and spreading, are worked with
boldly projecting foliate volutes on broad stems in
very low relief. The respond of the western arch is
of the same character, having been moved one bay
westward when the arcade was lengthened, and the
pillar which takes its place has a simply moulded
circular capital of 13th-century date, the arch in this
bay being pointed of two chamfered orders. Above
the crowns of the arches are traces of square clearstory
openings of uncertain but probably late date. The
south wall of the nave is in part of 12th-century date,
and the position of its original south doorway is to be
seen in the masonry a little to the east of the present
not be dated by ordinary rules. The east window of
the transept is 15th-century work of two lights.
The north aisle is lighted by two square-headed
two-light windows on the north, of 15th-century
date, and between them is a small four-centred north
doorway of the same period. The west window of
the aisle is a small lancet, which may be in part of the
1 3th century, but both its head and sill are modern.
In the south wall of the nave are two two-light
windows with a sixfoil in the head, both being to the
west of the south doorway. They are of I 5th-century
style, the first being quite modern, and the other
having modern tracery. Between the doorway and
the south transept is a blocked I yth-century window
of three square-headed lights, high in the wall, which
must have formerly lighted a gallery or pulpit. The
south doorway has a semicircular head o! two orders
with late 12th-century detail, zigzag and a keeled roil,
only a few of the voussoirs being old, and nook-shafts
with capitals of poor style, but of 1 2th-century date.
The old work in the doorway is about contemporary
with the north arcade, and if, as seems possible, it has
been taken from the older doorway a little further to
5cM<z of Tett.
ao
BMB^n.-»CZNT- ^ l/CTE-lfWCENT
STONE CHURCH
doorway, which is made up of the materials of its
predecessor. The nave walls have been heightened,
the line of an older steep-pitched roof showing on
the east face of the tower. The north transept
appears to be an early 14th-century addition, and
has a north window of two uncusped lights, with a
plain circle over, and a 15th-century east window of
two cinquefoiled lights with a sixfoil over. In its
west wall is a small square-headed ijth-century
opening, now blocked, and the transept opens to the
aisle by a plain pointed arch whose southern respond
is built against the first column of the north arcade.
The south transept is considerably larger than the
north, and was doubtless the Lady chapel. It has
three lancets on the south and one on the west, nearly
all modern, the head of the western window being
cut out of an old stone carved with a rosette. The
arch from the nave to the transept is a very rough
piece of work with chamfered orders, the inner of
which springs from clumsily moulded circular capitals
resting on circular shafts ; it may be the work of
untrained local masons in the 1 3th century, but can-
the east after the lengthening of the nave, it must be
assumed that a still earlier doorway formerly existed
here, belonging to the aisleless 1 2th-century church.
The south porch is entirely modern, but has at its-
north-east angle a holy-water stone.
The tower is of mid- 14th-century date, but has
been very much repaired. It is of three stages with
a tiled roof, gabled east and west, and plain parapet
resting on a corbel table, carved into ball flowers and
grotesques. The belfry windows are of two lights
with modern tracery, but the opening and labels are
original, and over each is a gargoyle. The tower
stairs are in a square south-east turret entered through
a 14th-century internal door, and have recently been
capped with a pyramidal stone roof. The west
window of the ground stage is of two trefoiled lights
with tracery over and an ogee label. Below it is an
original dcorway very much restored, and with con-
tinuously moulded jambs and head, and the east arch
of the tower is of three wave-moulded orders with a
label returned as a string to the side walls of the nave.
The roofs and the fittings throughout are largely
3IO
STONE CHURCH : NORTH ARCADE OF NAVE
STONE HUNDRED
modern, though there are a few old bench ends of
simple design and I jth-ccntury date. The font is
a very remarkable piece of work, with a heavy circular
bowl on a short stem, and a spreading base ; the stem,
which is ornamented with interlacing patterns, is
modern, but the bowl is of the nth century, perhaps
e. 1 140, and has round the top a band of interlacing
ornament, and on the tides a series of knotwork
patterns, all most elaborately enriched with pellets
and small carved heads or foliage in the interstices.
The principal subject, however, is the figure of a man
standing on a serpent between a lion (or wolf) and a
dragon, and holding a sword over the head of the
former. His left hand is in the mouth of the dragon,
who is being attached from behind by a bird, and in
front by a small human figure. Behind the lion is a
large fish. The smaller details of carving, heads of
beasts, &c., worked into the knotwork patterns, are
so unlike ordinary I zth-century work that it must
be concluded that much of the carving has been
re-worked. In the floor of the nave is a brass to
William Gurney of Bishopstone, 1472, and Agnes
his wife, the date of whose death is left blank, with
their five sons and three daughters. The figures of
the wife and children remain, but that of the husband
has been lost and replaced by the mutilated early
15th-century figure of a lady.
The tower contains a ring of six bells and a sanctus,
the latter by Richard Chandler, 1699. The treble
was re-cast in 1883 by Warner & Sons ; the second
is inscribed ' I as trebll beginn ' ; the third was cast
by Chandler in 1726 ; the fourth is inscribed 'I as
third ring ' ; the fifth is by Thomas Mears, 1839; and
the tenor was re-cast by Warner in 1883. The second
and fourth were cast by Ellis Knight in the i/th
century, and, as their inscriptions show, formed the
treble and third of a former ring.
The plate consists of a chalice of 1805, a paten of
1804, and a plated standing paten and flagon.
The first book of the registers contains all entries
from I 538, baptisms running to 1752, burials to 1753,
and marriages to 1754, wkile a separate book has
burials in wool between 1678 and 1730. The
second book contains baptisms and burials between 1753
and 1812, and two books of marriages by banns con-
tain entries between 1754 and 1771, and between
1771 and 1812.
The church of Stone was held in
JDyOWSON the 1 2th century with the fee belong-
ing to the honour of Belvoir. In
the reign of Henry I William de Bracey granted it
to Oseney Abbey," and his son Gilbert confirmed the
grant, and himself gave a messuage and I hide of land
to the abbey.*0 This grant was confirmed in the
STONE
charters of Edward II and Edward III." The vicarage
was ordained before 1271." At the Dissolution the
abbey held the rectory and advowson of the church,
which were granted in 1542 to the Dean and Chapter
of Christ Church, Oxford." In 1545 they were,
however, given to Sir Anthony Lee, together with
St. Cleres Manor.** He must have alienated half
the rectory and advowson before his death in 1550,
since he then held only one moiety.*4 In 1553
Sir Robert Dormer died seised of half the rectory,
and he probably held half the advowson as well."
His son and heir Sir William Dormer obtained
the share of the Lees in 1559," and afterwards
held the whole advowson.** The Lees, however,
obtained possession of the rectory and advowson, and
in 1662-3 Sir Thomas Lee, bart., obtained a quit-
claim from Charles, Earl of Carnarvon, of the advow-
son and land and tithes, for £100."
The Lees held the advowson100 till 1844, when
John Lee, LL.D., then lord of the manor, gave it to
the Royal Astronomical Society. He was an original
member of the society, and became its president in
1862."" The gift of the advowson was made with a
view to the promotion of astronomy in connexion
with theology.
Colonel Lee, the present lord of the manor, has,
however, lately re-purchased the advowson of the
vicarage of Stone.10* The ecclesiastical parishes of
Stone and Hartwell were united by an Order in
Council, dated 18 August 1892, Little Hampdcn
having previously been separated from Hartwell.
The rent from a close of land was surrendered in
the reign of Edward VI, having been given for the
keeping of an obit in Stone. The land lay in the
hamlet of Bishopstone, the rent being \6J. a year,
and the clear value being \\d. a year.101
A chapel at Bishopstone is mentioned in a grant
of Queen Elizabeth to Sir Edward Stanley. There
had been one close of land attached to it, and both
had been in the occupation of the vicar of Stone ;
there seems, however, to be no trace of its origin or
date of foundation.104
Bishopstone is now a large hamlet with a chapel-of-
ease to Stone Church. It also contains a Wesleyan
chapel, built in 1877.
Sir William Plomer, kt., by will
CHARITIES dated 22 October 1800, bequeathed
£ 100 stock, now £100 consols, with
the official trustees, the dividends to be applied by the
minister and churchwardens in the distribution of
bread or meat. In 1906 the sum of £2 lot. was
given towards tickets for meat to twenty-eight sick
and necessitous persons.
The Charity of Louis XVIII, see under Hartwell.
» Cott. MS. Vit. E. IT.
•• Ibid.
•' Dugdale, Mm. vi, 254..
« y.CM. Buh. i, 284, n. 5.
* Pat. 34 Hen. VIII, pt. 6.
•« Ibid. 37 Hen. VIII, pt. 16, m. 14.
M Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. a), re, no. i.
•* Ibid, zcr, no. 5.
»" Feet of F. Buck*. Mich, i Eliz.
" Chan. Inq. p.m. (Scr. i), clu, no. i.
•» Feet of F. Buck*. Ilil. 13 * 14
Chat. II.
"• P.R.O. Intt. Bk.. 1668, 1678, 1681,
1701, 1713, 1783, 1792, 1803, 1812.
101 Diet. Nat. Bag. xiutii, 36a~3.
1M From information given by CoL Lee.
X" Chant. Cert. 5, no. 64.
**• Pat. 31 Eli*, pt 13, m. 31.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
HUNDRED OF AYLESBURY
ASTON CLINTON
Estone, xi cent. ; Aston, Eston, xiii cent. ; Aston
Clynton, xiv cent.
Aston Clinton is a large parish, very long and
narrow in shape, lying on the northern slopes of the
Chiltern Hills. The highest point, 8 1 7 ft. above
the Ordnance datum,1 is near the most northerly of
the two Chiverey Farms. The hamlet of St. Leonards
in the extreme south-east corner of the parish lies
over 700 ft. above the Ordnance datum, but the
village of Aston Clinton and a large part of the parish
lies in the Vale of Aylesbury, its height varying from
200 ft. to 300 ft.' The subsoil is Upper Greensand
and Gault and the surface stiff loam.* The popula-
tion is mainly occupied in agriculture, and the parish
contains 1,257^ acres of arable land4 and 1,621^
of permanent grass. The parish is not well timbered
except at the Park and about the village. Straw-
plaiting used to be an important industry in the
village, but there is now but little demand for the
plait and the industry is gradually dying out. The
Aylesbury branch of the Grand Junction Canal passes
through the parish, along the south-east boundary of
Aston Clinton Park, where there is a spring of water
and an ornamental lake. One of the many streams
that water the Vale flows through the north of the
parish and forms the moat at Vaches or Vatches
Farm. Another branch of the Grand Junction Canal
crosses the parish, but is now disused.
In the Chiltern Hills the Chiltern Hills Water
Company has its waterworks, and there is a large
reservoir near Aston Hill. The high road from
Aylesbury to Tring, following the course of Akeman
Street, runs through the parish and forms the main
street of the village of Aston Clinton, the houses being
mostly modern. The Lower Icknield Way runs
from Weston Turville to the village and the Upper
Icknield Way also crosses the parish ; a branch road
connecting with Akeman Street and the Upper Ick-
nield Way runs south-east through the length of the
parish, by St. Leonards hamlet »nd on to Choles-
bury. No line of railway passes through the parish,
and the nearest station is 3^ miles away at Stoke
Mandeville on the Metropolitan Extension Railway.
The common fields of Aston Clinton were inclosed
by Act of Parliament, the award being dated 14 No-
vember 1 8 1 6.J There is a common to the north of
the hamlet of St. Leonards. A few houses, two
farms and an inn form the hamlet of Chiverey, pre-
serving the name of an ancient manorial division of
Aston Clinton. Various archaeological discoveries
have been made in the parish ; miscellaneous neolithic
instruments have been dug up as well as late Celtic
CLINTON. Argent six
crmsleti fitchy sable and
a chief azure "with fwo
pierced moleti or therein.
pottery and a Roman amphora. Aston Clinton
House, the only house of importance in the parish,
the residence of the Dowager Lady de Rothschild'
is modern, and is surrounded by finely-timbered
grounds. The church stands on the edge of the Park
in an ample churchyard at the entrance to which is
a counterpoise lichgate.
Before the Norman Conquest, the
MANORS manor of 4STON CLINTON wa»
held by Wlwen, a ' man ' of King
Edward.6 Wlwen is a woman's name, and she
seems to have been the predecessor of Edward de
Salisbury, the Domesday ten-
ant, in all his lands in Buck-
inghamshire.7 He was the
standard-bearer of Henry I
at the battle of Brenville in
1 1 oo," and was made Earl of
Salisbury.' Whether he alien-
ated it during his lifetime or
whether it descended to his
heir Walter de Salisbury does
not appear, but at the end of
the 1 2th century it belonged
to the family of Clinton, who
held it by grand serjeanty. In
1193 and 1 194 William de Clinton rendered account
of 10 marks for having seisin of his land at Aston1*
until the king's return to England, so that he was
probably waiting to do homage to the king for lands
of inheritance. In this case they had been held pre-
sumably by his father Jordan de Clinton." William
died before 1 196," and the sheriff of the county ren-
dered account for his lands in Aston. In 1 200 King
John granted to Hugh de Haversham the custody of
his lands and heir and the marriage of the heir," but
the next year this was cancelled, since Isabella de
Clinton gave 300 marks for the same privileges."
She answered for Aston for several years, and was pro-
bably the widow of William de Clinton." His heir
was his son, another William de Clinton," who is
mentioned in a list of tenants in chief in 1210—12."
In 1216, however, the manor was in the hands of
the king," although Isabella was still alive, and while
William de Clinton was still a minor." The manor
of Aston was granted in that year by King John to
Walerand Teutonicus for the support of the castle of
Berkhampstead." Before 1219 William de Clinton
appears to have come of age and obtained possession
of Aston." His name appears for the last time in
1 228," and the next tenant of the manor seems to
have been Nicia de Clinton, who was holding it in
1 Ord. Surv. « Ibid.
• V.C.H. Bucks, i, Geological Map.
4 Inf. supplied by Bd. of Agric. (1905).
5 Com. Intl. Award.
• V.C.H. Bucks, i, 263*. 7 Ibid.
8 Orderic Vitalit, Hist. Eul. (ed.
Migne), pt. iii, bk. 12.
• G.E.C. Complete Peerage.
10 Pipe R. 5 Ric. I, m. 1 1 d.
11 Curia Regis R. 71, m. 23 d.
" Pipe R. 8 Ric. I, m. 17.
18 Chart. R. (Rec. Com.), 50* ; Rot. de
Obltt. et Fin. (Rec. Com.), 61.
11 Ibid. 173.
« Red Bk. ofExch. (Rolls Sen), 137.
18 Curia Regis R. 71, m. 23 d.
312
" Red Bk. of Excb. (Rolls Ser.), 537.
18 Maitland, Bracttn's Note Bk. case
"373-
"'Rot. Lit. Clans (Rec. Com.), i, 286.
» Ibid.
M Curia Regis R. 71, m. 23 d. Feet
of F. Bucks. 6 Hen. Ill, nos. 2-5.
M Maitland, Bracton's Note Bk. case 283.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
ASTON CLINTON
1240-1." Her relationship to William de Clinton
does not appear ; but it seems probable that she was
his widow, and having been jointly seised with him,
held the whole manor for her life." She died in or
before 1 146," when she w» succeeded by her son
William de Clinton,1* more usually called de Paris,
who did homage for the manor in 1247." About
1252 he alienated the manor of Aston Clinton to
William de Montagu for his homage and service."
The new tenant in 1 268 made an exchange with Philip
Basset and Lady Ella his wife," who obtained it for
their lives, holding by fealty and the yearly rental of
\J. Lady Ella, who was the daughter of William
Longespee, Earl of Salisbury,10 and Countess of War-
wick in right of her first husband, survived Philip
Basset and held the manor till her death." William
de Montagu died in or before 1271, and his son and
heir Simon, who was a minor, surrendered all his
MONTAGU. Argent «
frill indented gutu having
thru foinn.
Nn ILL. Gulti a tal-
lin argent and a label
goiony argent and axure.
lands into the hands of the king." In 1290,° how-
ever, he obtained a new charter from Edward I,
granting him the manor of Aston Clinton to hold in
fee-tail, and two years later the Countess of Warwick
was ordered by the king to do fealty and service to
Simon for the manor." The Montagus held the
manor without interruption until the death of Thomas
Montagu, Earl of Salisbury." He left an only
daughter and heiress Alice," who married Richard
Nevill, Earl of Warwick,17 who was recognized as
Earl of Salisbury on the death of his father.1* He
and his wife granted the manor of Aston Clinton for
life to Richard Hertcombe," who died in 1435,'° and
it reverted to the Earl and Countess." Their lands
passed to their son Richard Nevill, the king-maker,"
and after his death at the battle of Barnet in 1471
his lands were divided between his two sons-in-law,
the Dukes of Clarence and Gloucester. Aston Clin-
ton must have been assigned to Clarence and his wife
Isabel, since it passed to their son Edward, Earl of
Warwick," who was attainted and executed in 1499."
The manor remained in the hands of the Crown
until Margaret, the sister of the last Earl of Warwick,
was restored in lands and blood in 1513." She was
also created Countess of Salisbury ** and married Sir
Richard Pole.47 She held the manor until 1539,**
when, falling under the suspicion of Henry VIII at
a possible heir to the throne, she was attainted and
executed two years later." Henry VIII retained
Aston Clinton in his own hands, but Edward VI
granted it to his sister, the Lady Miry, in 1 549.**
Soon after her accession to the throne, however, she
restored it" to Sir Thomas Hastings and his wife
Winifred, one of the granddaughters and heiresses
of the Countess of Salisbury. After the death of
Hastings " his widow married Sir Thomas Barring-
ton," who was in seisin of the manor of Aston Clin-
ton in 1579." The reversion of the manor was
granted by Elizabeth to Lord Burghley, Sir William
Mildmay, and Gilbert Gerrard," and by James I to
Sir Francis Barrington.*4 The latter was the son of
Sir Thomas Barrington and his wife Winifred, and
afterwards succeeded them in the manor. In 1614
Sir Francis and his wife Joan obtained licence ** to
alienate the manor of Aston Clinton to Gilbert Ger-
rard," who married the daughter of Sir Francis
Barrington.4*
The Gerrards held the manor without interrup-
tion60 until Elizabeth, the heiress of Sir Charles
Gerrard, who died in 1701, married Warwick Lake."
The manor descended to her heirs," and in 1765°
her grandson Gerard Lake, Baron Lake of Delhi, &c.,
and of Aston Clinton, was lord of the manor. He
Gl»A»D.
laliire gul'i.
Argent a
LA 1 1. Salle a tend
ktvieen lix erouleti ftehj
argent.
was raised to the peerage as a reward for distinguished
services in India during the Mahratta War. He had
previously served in Germany, France, and America,
and had been second in command of the forces in
the north of Ireland during the rebellion of 1797-8,
n Aitizc R. 55, m. I.
* Tetta dt Nrvill (Rec. Com.), 145*,
257*.
'" Chan. Inq. p.m. Hen. Ill, file 5,
no. I.
» Ibid.
* Excerfu i Rot. Fin. (Ree. Com.), ii, 5.
•Chan. Inq. p.m. tint. Ill, file 18,
no. 8.
» Feet of F. Dir. Co. Mich. 53 Hen.
III.
*° C.E.C. Cimfltte Peerage.
" Col. tf Inf. Hen. Ill, 807 ; Feud.
Aidi, i, 85 ; P.R.O. Anct. D., A. 45.
« Col. oflnj. Hen. Ill, 807.
* Chart. R. 18 Edw. I, no. 8], m. 18.
M Col. Pat. 1181-91, p. 479.
•* Fnd. Aidi, i, 113-!}. Chin. Inq.
2
p.m. 13 Edw. II, no. 31 5 ibid. 18 Edw.
Ill (lit no«.), no. 39; ibid. 10 Ric. II,
no. 3? ; ibid, i Hen. V, no. 39, file 140.
« Ibid. 7 Hen. VI, no. 57.
17 G.E.C. Ccmflite Peerage.
n Ibid. ; Chan. Inq. p.m. 7 Hen. VI,
no. 57.
'• Cat. Pat. 1419-36, p. 13 ; Feet of F.
Buck*. Eait. 9 Hen. VI.
M Chan. Inq. p.m. 13 Hen. VI, no. 18.
«> Ibid.
41 G.E.C Ctmflete Peerage,
• Ibid.
44 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. j), rrviii, 131.
* G.E.C. Ccmflete Peerage.
«* Ibid. «7 Ibid.
41 Pat. 1 PhiL and Mary ; Pat. 31 Eli/.
pt-3.
3'3
4t G.E.C. Comflra Peerage.
10 Pat. i Edw. VI, pt. 5, m. 8.
" Pit. i It i Phil, and Mary, pt. 5,
m. 31.
» Ibid.
" G.E.C. Comfliti Baronetage.
** Recov. R. Eait 11 Elix.
u Pat. 31 Elix. pL J.
*• Pat. 11 Jaa. I, pt.. I j Cat. S.P. Dom.
1611-18, p. 148.
w Pat. 1 1 J». I, pt. 39.
» Feet of P. Buck.. Mich, n Ja». I j
Recov. R. Mich. 11 Jit. I.
*» G.E.C. Cam f l,t, Baronetage.
*> Recov. R. Trin. 10 Chai. II.
11 G.E.C. Comflete Bartnettre.
" Ibid.
** Recov. R. Mich. 6 Gco. HI.
40
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
defeating the French force that landed there. He
was commander-in-chief in India from 1 800 to 1805,
and won the battles of Delhi and Leswarzi in 1803.
He represented the borough of Aylesbury in Parlia-
ment from 1790 to 1802, although during part of the
time he was absent from England. He died in 1808,
and was succeeded in his titles by his two sons in
succession.64 The third Viscount Lake died in 1848,
leaving two daughters as his heiresses, and all his titles
became extinct. The manorial rights in Aston Clin-
ton were extinguished by the Inclosure Act of 1814,
in return for several acres of land, but the estate was
in the possession of the Lakes till shortly after the
death of the last Lord Lake. In 1851 it was pur-
chased by Sir Anthony de Rothschild, bart.,65 and is
now held by his widow Louisa, Dowager Lady de
Rothschild.
The manor of Aston Clinton was held by grand
serjeanty, but the exact service is differently described
at different times. In 1210-12 William de Clinton
held it by the serjeanty of the larderer.66 Some years
later, however, Nicia de Clinton was bound to pro-
vide a Serjeant, with horse and arms to serve in the
king's army at her own cost for forty days.6' The
different lords of the manor, however, and especially
the elder William de Clinton,68 had alienated part of
the serjeanty without the king's consent." This
appears to have passed unnoticed, until many of
the services due from the serjeanties in Bedfordshire
and Buckinghamshire were commuted by Robert
Passelewe,70 probably between 1246 and 1255."
William de Paris received over £15 a year for the
alienated land, but under the pressure of the royal
officials an agreement was made as between William
and his tenants.71 The latter were to answer to him
for the third part of the value of his tenement, and
to pay in/, a year, which he paid to the king.™
His own service, for the land that remained in his
own hands, was changed from serjeanty to the mili-
tary service due from one knight's fee.74 The rent
from the tenants was paid through all the changes of
the lords of the manor.75 It is mentioned in a rental,
made in the reign of Edward III,76 and again when
the manor of Aston Chiverey (q.v.) was in the hands
of Henry VI.77 The rent was finally purchased in
1671 7S from the trustees for the sale of the fee-farm
rents payable to the Crown by Sir Francis Gcrrard,
who then held the manor. The rents, however, had
then been settled or were about to be settled on the
queen for her life as part of her jointure, and there-
fore she was entitled to take the rents during her life,
the reversion being vested in Sir Francis.79
AUDLEY. Cults fretty
A court leet, a court baron and view of frankpledge
were held for the manor.80
At the end of the izth century William de
Clinton alienated 40 librates of land, which after-
wards formed the manor of 4STON CHirERET, to
Reginald de Mohun in frank-marriage with Alice,
probably the daughter of William de Clinton.81
After the death of Reginald Alice held the manor
herself,61 but before 1215 she married Robert de
Beauchamp,8* and they held the manor jointly.84
Between 1247 and 1261-2 the manor of Chiverey
was granted at ferm to James de Audley, who after-
wards became possessed of the
fee-simple.85 Alice de Audley,
the widow of James de Audley,
or his son of the same name,
held the manor of Aston Chi-
verey in the 1 4th century.
She died in 1342, and was
succeeded by William de Aud-
ley, the grandson of James de
Audley." He claimed to hold
it by descent from the original
feoffees of William de Clin-
ton.87 William de Audley
settled the manor of Chiverey on himself, his wife
Joan, and their heirs.88 He died in 1367, and his
widow held it till I382,89 when it passed to Eliza-
beth the niece of William de Audley and daughter
of Thomas de Audley.*0 Elizabeth married John
Rose, an esquire of Richard II." She seems to
have predeceased her husband,91 who held the
manor for life, according to a settlement made in
I387,9S and by agreement with Philip St. Clair,94
who seems to have been the heir of Elizabeth Rose.
His only relationship to Elizabeth was apparently
through the mother of William de Audley, who was
one of the sisters and co-heiresses of Edmund de Bere-
ford.95 Another sister married John St. Clair the
grandfather of Philip.96 Philip St. Clair never was
in seisin of the manor, since John Rose outlived
him.97 The latter died in 1410, and Aston Chiverey
was seized into the king's hands during the minority
of John son and heir of Philip.98 John died before
coming of age,99 and the manor passed to his brother
Thomas, who twice in a very short time tried to
evade the rights of wardship of the king. In 1424
he was fined £zoo for having married Margaret Hoo
without the king's consent, while he was still a ward
of Henry V,100 and in 1425 "" he made a settlement
of the manor of Aston Chiverey with the intent to
defraud the king of the wardship of his heirs, and
84 Diet. Nat. Biog.; G.E.C. Comflea
Peerage ; Ret. of M.emb. ofParl.
65 Sheahan, Hist, and Tofog. of Bucks. 86.
66 Red Bk. ofExch. (Rolls Ser.), 537.
" Assize R. 55, m. 22 ; Chan. Inq.
p.m. Hen. Ill, lilt 5, no. I.
88 Assize R. 58, m. 17 d.
69 Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 254*.
•o Ibid.
71 Chan. Inq. p.m. Hen. Ill, file 5, no.
I ; ibid, file 18, no. 2.
7" Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 254*.
» Ibid.
7« Ibid.
76 Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
" P.R.O. Rentals and Surv. 72.
7" P.R.O. Ct. R. portf. 155, no. I.
78 Close, 23 Chas. II, pt. 20, no. 10.
" Ibid.
80 Chan. Inq. p.m. 13 Hen. VI, no.
28.
81 Assize R. 57, m. 8 d.; 58, m. 6 d. The
relationship of Alice to William de Mon-
tagu is omitted in the Assize R., but in a
rental of the reign of Edward III the grant
is said to have been made by William to
his son with his wife ; P.R.O. Rentali
and Surv. 72.
82 Assize R. ;8, m. 6 d. ; Tata de Nevill
(Rec. Com.), 257*.
88 Rot. Lit. Clam. (Rec. Com.), i, 235.
84 Chan. Inq. p.m. Hen. Ill, file 5,
no. i.
85 Assize R. 56, m. 17 ; 57, m. 8 d.;
58, m. 6d.
86 Chan. Inq. p.m. 15 Edw. Ill (ut
nos.), no. 10.
8< P.R.O. Rentals and Surv. 72.
3U
88 De Banco R. 352, m. 130 ; Feet of
F. Bucks. Mich. 21 Edw. Ill; Chan.
Inq. p.m. 10 Ric. II, no. I.
89 Ibid. 6 Ric. II, no. 5.
90 Ibid. 7 Ric. II, no. 8.
« Cal. Pat. 1381-5, p. 459 ; ibid.
1385-9, p. 223.
88 Chan. Inq. p.m. I Hen. VI, no. 4.
98 Feet of F. Bucks. Mich, n Ric. II.
M Early Chan. Proc. bdle. 7, no. 211.
95 De Banco R. East. 7 Hen. IV, m.
1 20.
96 Ibid. Mich. 36 Edw. Ill, m. 268.
•7 Chan. Inq. p.m. 9 Hen. IV, no. 44.
•« Ibid.
94 Ibid, i Hen. VI, no. 30.
100 Cal. Pat. 1422-9, p. 1 80.
101 Close, 3 Hen. VI, m. 2 ; Feet of F.
Div. Co. Trin. 5 Hen. VI.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
was fined £60. lw He died in 1435,"* leaving three
daughters, the eldest of whom was then thirteen years
old. In the partition of his lands the manor was
assigned to Eleanor, the second daughter, who married
John Gage.104 They held it jointly till the death of
Eleanor, and then John held it for life.10* He died
in l4fj6,M and was succeeded by his son William
Gage and grandson Sir John Gage.1" The latter,
together with his wife Philippa and Edmund and
John Gage, sold the manor of Aston Chiverey in
1532 to Margaret, Countess of Salisbury, Reginald
Pole, clerk, and others,10" and from this time it was
held with the manor of Aston Clinton lo* (q.v.).
Another manor, known as VJCHES M4XOR, in
Aston Clinton, appears to have been held by Richard
de Turri in the early part
of the 1 3th century. He
obtained licence to build a
chapel in his land in Aston
from Bishop Grosteste (1235-
53)."° He died before 1 27 1,
but his manor did not pass to
his son and heir Richard, but
to Richard de la Vache.111
The latter obtained a quit-
claim from the younger de
Turri, who acknowledged the
manor to be the right of
Richard de la Vache.1" There
were suits between them as to land and messuages111 in
Aston Clinton, but Richard de la Vache remained in
undisturbed possession of the manor.114 Before 1 302-3
he was succeeded by Matthew de la Vache,11* who
was followed by another Richard de la Vache,1" his
son. The latter obtained a grant of free warren in
his demesne lands in Aston Clinton in 1364..'" He
was succeeded by his son Philip de la Vache, who was
certified of full age in 1 37 1.1" Philip was made a
knight of the Garter, receiving the honour after
February 1 398-9."* He was keeper of the royal park
at Chiltern Langley,"0 and was a knight of the shire
in the Parliament of I387-"1 He married Elizabeth
daughter of Sir Lewis Clifford, ln and various settle-
ments were made of Vaches Manor which appears
to have been held by a John de la Vache and his
wife Elizabeth for life.1*1 Philip also granted it to
several feoffees, presumably to the use, after his own
death, of his wife and heir.1*4 Sir Philip de la Vache
died in 1407 or 1408,'" and his widow held the
m.inor for life in 1410 ;"* she enfeoffed John Kirk-
ham and his wife Anna to hold during her life. After
Di LA VACHE. Gultt
three ham argent kaving
ASTON CLINTON
her death Kirkh.im refused to give up the manor to
the feoffees of Sir Philip, represented by John Buktoft,
and a lawsuit ensued, the result of which does not
appear.1" The heir of Philip dc la Vache is said to
have been his daughter Blanche,"* the first wife of
Richard Grey de Wilton, who certainly obtained
Vaches Manor."* He had a further claim on it,
since his grandmother had been Matilda, the sister of
Matthew de la Vache."0 He granted the manor UI
to Richard Henbarowe, John Clubbewell, and Richard
Koppe, but some years afterwards, in i^2,ta the last-
named feoffee regranted it to Richard and his second
wife Margaret in fee-tail. Reginald Grey was the
son and heir of Richard,1* but Margaret held the
manor for her life."4 Edmund, Lord Grey de Wilton,
and his wife Florence held it in 1506,"* but in that
year they sold it to Thomas Craford, William Lynne,
Nicholas Shelton, Richard Lee, and the heirs of
Shelton. Vaches Manor afterwards passed to John
Colet, Dean of St. Paul's,"* and formed part of the
endowment of St. Paul's School."7 The trustees of
the school, the Mercers Company of London, still
own Vaches Farm in Aston Clinton.
At the close of the 1 2th century the manor of
DUNDRIDGE was held by Henry de Crokesley of
William de Clinton.1" Henry granted land with
the consent of his heir from his tenement in Dun-
dridge to the abbey of Missenden in the time of
Robert de Braybroc, who was under-sherifF of the
county in 1197 and 1199 and sheriff in 1204 and
1205."" The grant was confirmed by William de
Crokesley, the nephew and heir of Henry, when in
possession of Dundridge, and also by a Roger and a
second Henry de Crokesley.1*0 The manor was after-
wards held by Richard de Crokesley in the 1 3th
century, '" certainly between 1240—1 "' and 1286.'**
After the grant of Aston Clinton Manor by Wil-
liam de Paris to William de Montagu, Richard de
Crokesley brought an action in lz6l10 against the
latter, to recover reasonable estover in a wood at
Aston, appertaining to his manor of Dundridge.
John de Crokesley is mentioned in I275,IU but
whether he ever held the manor does not appear.
Shortly afterwards the subtenancy must have lapsed,
since William de Montagu, Earl of Salisbury, died
seised, c. 1320,"* of lands and messuages at Dun-
dridge, and in a survey of the manor made in the
reign of Edward III,147 Crokesley's land is mentioned
among the free tenements held of Isabella de Montagu.
Thomas, Earl of Salisbury, died seised of the manor
of Dundridge in 1428, '** and it was held with the
101 Cal. Pat. 14219, p. 352.
1M Chan. Inq. p.m. 17 Hen. VI, no. 56.
>" Ibid. 15 Edw. IV, no. 16.
1" Ibid.
>« Ibid.
'« Ibid. (Ser. l), siii, 105.
"• L. and P. He*, fill, T, 909 (xi).
IM Feet of F. Bucki. EaiL 24 Hen.
VIII.
110 Line. Epi«. Reg. ; Bp. Groitcitr'i
Init.
"i Feet of F. Buck.. Mich. 55 Hen.
III.
>« Ibid.
»• Ibid. Ea.t. 8 Edw. I.
u« Ibid, Trin. 1 1 Edw. I.
>u Feud. AiJi, i, 91.
»• Feet of F. Bucki. Trin. I 3 Edw. III.
»' Chart. R. 37 Edw. Ill, no. 155,
m.4.
111 Chan. Inq. p.m. 44 Edw. Ill (lit
not.), no. 82.
»« Shaw, Knigtu of Engl.
«° Cat. Pal. 1405-8, p. 441.
»» Kit. ofMemb. of Par 1.
la G.E.C. Comfltu Pitragi ; Collins,
Pteragi (ed. Brydgei), vii, ill.
"• Feet of F. Bucki. Eatt. z Ric. II ;
ibid. 10 Ric. II ; ibid. Diy. Co. zz Ric. II ;
ibid. 5 Hen. IV.
IH De Banco R. no. 571, m. $zod. ;
Cloie, 12 Hen. IV, m. 38.
"•Shaw, Knigkn of Engl. ; Col. Pat.
1405 8, p. 442.
>» Feet of F. Div. Co. Mich. 1 1 Hen.
IV.
"W Early Chan. Proc. bdle. 7, no. 204.
Mi G.E.C Comfliu Petragt.
"• Chan. Inq. p.m. 20 Hen. VI,
no. 23.
3'5
"• De Banco R. Mich. 22 Hen. VI,
m. 408.
U1 Chan. Inq. p.m. 20 Hen. VI, no. 23.
U1 Ibid. "» Ibid.
«•« Feet of F. DiT. Co. Trin. 26
Hen. VI.
« Ibid. Trin. 21 Hen. VII.
•* Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. z), MY, 160.
W Ibid.
>•» Harl. MS. 3688.
«• P.R.O. Liu ofSlurifft.
"« Harl. MS. 3688.
» Tau dt NtvilKRcc. Com.), 254*.
'" Aiaize R. 5 5, m. 3d.
14« feud. Aidi, i, 85.
M* Awiie R. 58.
>« Feet of F. Buck*. Trin. 3 Edw. I.
"* Chan. Inq. p.m. 13 Edw. II, no. 31.
"' (P.R.O.) Rentalt and Sur». no. 72.
"• Chan. Inq. p.m. 7 Hen. VI, no. 57.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
manor of Aston Clinton "' until it passed into the
hands of Henry VIII on the attainder of Margaret,
Countess of Salisbury. In 154.4 the king sold the
manor of Dundridge to Sir John Baldwin,150 who
died seised of the manor.151 It then passed to his
grandson Sir Thomas Pakington, and in 1578 it
was sold by John Pakington to Henry and Richard
Baldwin.152 Henry Baldwin obtained a grant of free
warren in his lands in Aston Clinton from James 1 1M
in 1620. Before 1628 154 the manor passed to Richard,
presumably the son of Henry Baldwin, and he settled
it on his wife Christian and his own heirs male, on
his brother Silvester, and the four sons of Silvester.145
Richard died in l636,156 and although his widow
survived him,15r Dundridge seems to have come into
the possession of Henry Baldwin, his nephew.15*
Before 1670 it passed to Edward Baldwin, who sold
it to Thomas Baldwin.159 Another Edward Baldwin
appears to have succeeded to the manor before i689,1M
and his family held it till 1768, when Robert Monteith
Baldwin sold it to the father of Edward Darell, who
owned Dundridge in 1813. 161 His daughter Eliza-
beth married John Jeffrey, and her grandson, the
Rev. John Jeffrey, rector of Barnes, inherited it.161 In
1900, on the death of Canon Jeffrey of Hawkhurst,
Kent, his trustees sold his estate at Dundridge. The
house and 150 acres of land are owned and occupied by
Mr. Robert T. Green ; about 130 acres were sold to
Mr. Frederick Butcher of Tring and the remaining 50
acres were purchased in three separate divisions.1'8"
The manor of Dundridge formed part of the
serjeanty of Aston Clinton, and like the main manor
its service was commuted by Robert Passelewe in the
reign of Henry III.1* The Crokesleys had, like the
lords of Aston Clinton, alienated part of their land,
and Richard de Crokcsley's tenants also answered by
agreement for a third part of his holding,1" paying
the annual rent of us. <)d.l>> This rent was bought
in 1671 by Sir Francis Gerrard at the same time that
he obtained the rent due from his own manor.16*
The service from the land retained by Richard de
Crokesley in his own hands was changed from ser-
jeanty to military service, and his whole fee answered
for the thirtieth part of a knight's fee.167 In 1254
he paid half a mark yearly to the king, to be quit of
suit of court, and los. yearly for the right to hold the
view of frankpledgc for his tenants.168
Henry de Crokesley alienated part of his land in
Dundridge to the abbey of Missenden, with the
consent of William de Clinton.1" He granted them
' 1 3 solidatae ' of land, with the tenants living there,
and a third part of his demesne land, excepting the
land previously granted to the chapel of St. Leo-
nard.170 In 1254 the Abbot of Missenden was said
to hold in chief of the king, paying i$s. a year by
an agreement with his tenants,171 but previously he
had held of the serjeanty of William de Paris.171
The possessions of the abbey were confirmed by the
Popes Innocent IV and Boniface IX, and rents and
services in Dundridge are mentioned.173 The abbey
held the lands in Dundridge until the Dissolution.
In 1540 Henry VIII granted land in Aston Clinton
to Michael Dormer, that had formerly belonged to
the abbey of Missenden,1'4 but it is not said to be at
Dundridge, and four years later he gave two messuages
called Brunes and Brownes, respectively, and certain
demesne lands at Dundridge to Henry Bradshawe.174
The tenement called Brownes passed into the hands
of John Ginger, yeoman, before 1607, when he sold
it to his son Michael for £300. 176
The manor of MONTJOr in Aston Clinton was
held by the Montagus in demesne. Of its earlier
history there seems to be no record, but in 1 397
William de Montagu, Earl of Salisbury, died seised of
lands and tenements in Montjoy held of the king by
fealty.177 He had granted them in fee to Sir William
Farendon, who obtained a regrant from the king on
the death of the earl.1"* The manor is mentioned
for the last time in an inquisition on the lands of
Edward Earl of Warwick, taken in 1 5 1 3 I79 some
years after his attainder.
The manor of OKE was apparently in the parish
of Aston Clinton, but it is only mentioned twice in
the I4th and 1 5th centuries. John Rose and his
wife Elizabeth held the manors of Chiverey and Oke
in I389.180 Thomas St. Clare also held the manor of
Oke in I424,"1 but it is not mentioned again in the
descent of the manor of Aston Chiverey.
In Domesday Book there was one mill at Aston
Clinton of the yearly value of five ' ores ' of silver.181
In the 1 3th century Robert son of Martin held the
mill, with land and wood, from William de Paris,1"
and a water-mill is mentioned as appurtenant to
the manor, when it was held by the Earls of Salis-
bury.1'4 In the first years of the 1 6th century, it
was in such a complete state of disrepair that no
tenant could be found to take it,'85 but by 1520 this
had been remedied, and a new tenant was in pos-
session.188 There is no water-mill in Aston Clinton
parish at the present day.
The church of ST. MICHAEL
CHURCHES AND ALL ANGELS consists of a
chancel 346. gin. by 1 6 ft. 4 in., a
nave 5 1 ft. 8 in. by 176. 6 in., north and south
aisles, 7 ft. 6 in. and 8 ft. I in. wide respectively, a
west tower 13 ft. 5 in. by 12 ft. 2 in., and north and
south porches. The church probably consisted of
an aisleless nave and chancel up to the latter half of
«• Feet of F. Bucks. East. 9 Hen. VI ;
Cal. Pat. 1429-36, p. 23 ; Chan. Inq.
p.m. 13 Hen. VI, no. 28 ; ibid. (Ser. 2),
xxviii, 1 3 1 (P.R.O.) ; Mins. Accts. 6-7
Hen. VII, no. 24.
150 L. and P. Hen. fill, xix (i), 1035
(10).
151 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), Ixxiii, 7.
1M Pat. 20 Eliz. pt. 5, m. 13; Feet of
F. Bucks. Trin. 20 Eliz. ; Com. Pleas D.
Enr. Hil. 21 Eliz.
168 Pat. 18 Jas. I, pt. 15.
1M Recov. R. East. 3 Chas. I. ls6 Ibid.
164 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), cccclxxxi,
31. "? Ibid.
1M Fine R. 13 Chas. I, pt. 2, no. 50 ;
Feet of F. Bucks. East. 1 8 Chat. I.
»» Feet of F. Bucks. East. 22 Chas. II.
l«° Recov. R. Mich. I Will, and Mary.
161 Lysons, Magna. Brit, i, 500.
""G'ibbl, Hill, if Jylctburj, 316;
Burke, Landed Gentry (1906).
1Ma From information kindly given by
Mr. Fredk. Bailey.
168 Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 254*.
1" Ibid.
"5 Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
166 Close, 23 Chas. II, pt. 20, no. 10.
147 Tata Je Ne-vill (Rec. Com.), 254*.
"» Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
16» Ibid. '7° Harl. MS. 3688.
171 Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
^a Testa de Ne-vill (Rec. Com.), 254*.
''• Cal. Papal Letters, v, 435.
3l6
174 L.and P. Hen. VIII, xvi, 379 (2).
175 Ibid, xix (2), 340 (14).
176 Chan. Inq. p.m. Misc. dxxx, 2 Chas.
I, pt. 25, no. 164.
'"' Ibid. 20 Ric. II, no. 35.
V Cal. Rot. Pat. (Rec. Com.), 239*.
l~* Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), xxviii,
131.
180 Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. i 1 Ric. II.
m Close, 3 Hen. VI, m. 2.
W" V.C.H. Bucks, i, 2634.
183 Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 254*.
18< Chan. Inq. p.m. 13 Edw. II, no. 31;
ibid. 13 Hen. VI, no. 28.
"5 (P.R.O.) Mins. Accts. Bucks. Hen.
VII, no. 24.
186 Ibid. lo-n Hen. VIII, no. 132.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
the 1 3th century. Towards the end of that century
the south aisle, and about the middle of the 1 4th
the north aisle, were added. It is impossible to say
when the original tower was built, for this part of
the church was completely rebuilt about 1800. The
chancel was also rebuilt in the 1 4th century, and at
the same time and in the century following windows
were inserted at various points. The original clear-
story probably belonged to the latter date.
The east window of the chancel is modern and of
three trefoiled lights with tracery of 14th-century
detail and elaborately shafted jambs and moulded rear
arch. On either side of it are modern niches with
trefoiled heads and finialed canopies. In the north
wall it a much- restored niche of late 14th-century
work with a trefoiled head and an elaborate finialed
andcrocketed canopy on modern corbels Carved into
heads in mail hoods. This niche, possibly an Easter
sepulchre, it engraved in the Gentleman 'i Magazine for
1796, p. 841 that is previous to its restoration, and
is shown without the carved corbels but with small
side buttresses surmounted by figures. At the back
of this, externally, is a small square recess, now glazed.
West of this is a blocked 14th-century door continu-
ously moulded on its internal jambs, but not showing
on the outer face of the wall ; it once led into a
vestry, which is now destroyed, and of which the
recess was one of the fittings. Between this door
and the west wall are two mid- 14th-century windows
with geometrical tracery of two trefoiled lights
with two trefoils and a quatrefoil over, a moulded
rear arch and internal and external labels. At the
south-east of the chancel are three beautiful mid-
l^th-century sedilia and a piscina, divided from
each other by small buttresses with richly crocketed
pinnacles. The heads are cinquefoiled, in the case of
the sedilia sub-cusped, and of ogee form with richly
moulded crocketed and finialed labels, while the backs
of the sedilia are concave, and there is a shelf to the
piscina. The seats are at one level throughout.
Above is a blocked 14th-century window, and
west of it a small priest's door of 14th-century
date, and two 14th-century windows similar in
every respect to those on the north except that the
western one has its western light continued down-
wards to form a low side window, the sill of
the window above forming a square transom head.
The chancel arch, belonging to the first half of
the 1 4th century, is of two wave-moulded orders,
the jambs having half-round shafts with moulded
capitals.
The nave is of four bays. The north arcade has
two-centred arches of two wave-moulded orders and
an ogee label with carved drips. The east responds,
the first and the third columns are octagonal, the
second column and the west respond are round, while
all have moulded capitals and bases. The south
arcade, c. 1280, ha* two-centred arches of two
hollow-chamfered orders, broach stopped, and an
undercut label mitred over the piers, with buckle drip*
over the responds. The columns and responds are
round and octagonal, arranged in the same way as in
the north arcade, and have moulded capitals of rather
plain section and plain chamfered bases. At the east end
are doors on either side to the rood loft. There are
three much-restored clearstory lights on either hand;
the first and third are quatrefoils, the second a circle
with eight cusps. The tower arch is modern and of
ASTON CLINTON
the same detail as the north arcade, but there are a
few old stones in the jambs, which suggest a 14th-
century date for the original tower.
The north aisle has an east window of 15th-century
date with three cinquefoiled lights and cusped span-
drels under a square head, and with a moulded rear
arch and external jambs of two moulded orders. In
the south wall are three two-light windows of the
same date and of similar general design. All of these
have external labels and have been much restored.
To the west are two modern trefoiled lights in an old
opening. The north door, between the western pair
of windows, is of 15th-century date with a blunt
two-centred head and spandrel sinkings. The porch
is moJern.
The east window of the south aisle is of three
cinquefoiled lights with tracery and of early 1 5th-
century date, but is an insertion in an older opening,
which it does not fit. At the east end of the south
wall is a late 1 3th-century piscina with a moulded
two-centred head and a curiously crude label, which
is carried completely round the piscina, forming a sort
of frame. There are three two-light windows to the
south. All are very much restored, the westernmost
is almost entirely modern but the openings are old.
The lights are cinquefoiled, with cusped spandrel-
lights over under a square head, and are of 15th-
century style. Sufficient old stone remains, par-
ticularly in the easternmost, to make it appear pro-
bable that their tracery is a faithful copy of former
work. The sill of the first window is carried down to
form sedilia, and both this and the one next it have
shafted jambs, and all have moulded rear arches
and external jambs with square labels. The west
window of the aisle is also of 14th-century date,
with two trefoiled lights and two quatrefoils over
in a square head. The south door, between the
westernmost pair of windows, of late 14th-century
date though much restored, is of two double ogee
orders separated by a deep hollow, and has an ex-
ternal label.
The south porch of 15th-century date is of two
stages, but the upper part has been completely rebuilt
in recent years with the use of a great deal of new
material. In the north-west corner is the door to
the staircase, and the upper story is lighted by a
modern square-headed south window. The porch
entrance is of two orders and much restored.
The tower, which was completely rebuilt in 1 800
and restored since then, is of three stages, the lower
two of which are rough cast, the upper and the em-
battled parapet being faced with flint rubble. The
belfry openings are modern and of two cinquefoiled
lights with a square label. The west window is
modern, of 14th-century detail with two trefoiled
lights with tracery over.
The octagonal font is modern and of early 1 5th-
century detail, but in the south aisle is preserved
the basin of a 12th-century font of crude work-
manship ornamented with alternate raised and sunk
rosettes. The chancel roof is modern and of steep
pitch. The roofs of nave and aisles are of low pitch
and modern.
There is little woodwork of any interest, but a 17th-
century table remains, and a couple of chairs of the
same date stand within the sanctuary rails.
The tower contains six bells cast by Thomas Mean
& Sons 1806, and a sanctus dated 1778.
3'7
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
The church plate consists of a modern chalice, a
standing paten of 1715, and a plated flagon.
The first book of the registers contains marriages
from 1560 to 1721, baptisms from 1567 to 1722, and
burials from 1560 to 1722. The second book
contains all entries from 1723, marriages running to
1754 and the rest to 1752. A third book contains all
entries from 175410 1812.
The church of ST. LEONARD is a small plain
plastered building with a nave and chancel of equal
width, 1 6 ft. 3 in., and without any structural division,
the chancel being 24ft. 3 in. long and the nave 25 ft.
3 in. The latter is continued I oft. further west to
inclose a bell turret. There is a north porch to the
chancel and a south-west porch to the nave. Little
can be said of the history of the church. The earliest
remains are a piscina and one sedile in the chancel
which apparently date from the middle of the 141)1
century and may not be in their original position, as
there is evidence that a second seat adjoined the
single one which remains. The nave roof looks like
ijth-century work, but can hardly be older than
the repairs made by Cornelius Wood late in the
1 7th century. The windows are all modern or so
much altered that their date is matter for conjec-
ture only, and the chancel roof and the porches
are modern.
The east window of the chancel is of three cinque-
foiled lights under a four-centred head, and on its
sill is set an embattled cornice, which is all that
remains of a 15th-century reredos. On the north
of the chancel is a pointed doorway which has been
reset inside out and plastered so that its date is doubt-
ful. At the east end of the south wall of the chancel
is a cinquefoiled piscina ranging with a single sedile
of the same detail, both having moulded labels ;
the start of the label of a second seat is to be seen.
The bowl of the piscina projected from the wall
face, but has been cut back. West of this is a
window of two cinquefoiled lights under a four-
centred head.
The nave is lit by three windows, two on the
north and one on the south. The latter, towards
the east, is of two cinquefoiled lights under a four-
centred head and opposite to it in the north wall
is a similar window. The second north window is
a single three-centred uncusped light under a square
head. The south door, very plain, is modern of
14th-century detail.
West of the nave is the bell-cot around which a
thin wall in continuation of the nave walls has been
built, the old west wall being destroyed and a modern
window set in the new west wall.
The fittings are modern including the font which is
octagonal in form, with a slender stem and traceried
bowl. On the north wall of the nave is a marble monu-
ment with a pilastered entablature surmounted by a
skull set up in memory of Mr. Seth Wood
and Elizabeth his wife by their eldest son Cornelius
Wood in 1707 ; it bears a note to the effect
that another son John Wood was minister at
St. Leonard's for 30 years. The arms of Wood are :
crusilly three demi-woodhouses proper ; crest an oak
tree. On the south wall is a large florid monument
to Cornelius Wood, who died 1712 aged seventy-five,
and was colonel of a regiment of horse and lieutenant-
general in the army of Queen Anne. On the tomb is
an armed bust surrounded by warlike trophies and
flanked by cherubs blowing trumpets. Over it are
hung a funeral helmet, gauntlets, and crest. In the
chancel is a small monument to Samuel Baldwin, 1760,
and another to Mary Willis 1704, daughter of
Joseph Willis, minister, bearing the arms : a cheveron
between three mullets.
The bell-cot contains one bell.
The church plate consists of a communion cup and
cover paten of 1612, a second cup of 1814, and a
standing paten inscribed as the gift of R. Penn, esq.,
and hall-marked for 1775.
Only one book of registers exists, which contains
baptisms and burials from 1738 and marriages from
1739, all entries running to 1812. This book con-
tains a few sheets stamped for the threepenny duty
imposed on entries in registers from 1783 to 1794.
The church of Aston Clinton is
JDfOirSON a rectory, and till the i8th century
the advowson was presumably held
by the lords of the chief manor in Aston Clinton. It
is not, however, mentioned in any document during
the Clinton tenure of the manor, nor in the regrant
m.ide by Edward I to Simon de Montagu in 1 290. "'
His grandson William de Montagu, Eail of Salisbury,
diei seised of the advowson of the church of Aston
Clinton in I397,183 but there seems to have been
some question whether the right of presentation did
not belong to the Crown. This may have arisen,
however, after the forfeiture of the lands of John,
Earl of Salisbury, who opposed the accession of
Henry IV to the throne.169 Henry IV presented
Thomas Tuttebury as if the church was in his gift,190
and on the resignation of Tuttebury he again in 1402
presented to the benefice.1'1 On the petition of
Thomas de Montagu, Earl of Salisbury, however, the
letter of presentation was revoked, and the advow-
son was recognized to be the right of the earl.19*
After the attainder of Edward Earl of Warwick, the
advowson, together with the manor, came into the
possession of the Crown, and Henry VIII presented
several rectors to the church.19* Edward VI granted
the advowson to Lady Mary,194 and it afterwards
passed with the manor to the
Harringtons and the Gerrards.195
In 1727 the Lakes sold it to
the Principal and Fellows of
Jesus College, Oxford,186 who
are still the patrons of the
living.
The chapel of St. Leonard
is first mentioned in a charter
of Henry de Crokesley, grant-
ing land to the abbey of Mis-
senden, in which he excepted
from the gift of a third part
of his demesne lands at Dund-
ridge, 1 3 acres of land that he had granted to the chapel
of St. Leonard.197 Henry de Crokesley died before
JESUS COLLEGE, Ox-
ford. Argent three
harts tripping gules.
W Chart. R. 18 Edw. I, no. 38, m. 18.
138 Chan. Inq. p.m. 20 Ric. II, no. 35.
189 Cal. Pat. 1401-5, p. 217.
i»° Ibid.
191 Ibid. 190.
193 Ibid. 206, 217.
193 Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii, 88, 89.
194 Pat. 2 Edw. VI, pt. 5, m. 8.
195 Recov. R. East. 22 Eliz. ; ibid. Mich.
12 Jas. I ; P.R.O. Inst. Bks. 1663-7.
318
196 Lysons, Mag. Brit, i, 500-1 ; P.R.O.
Inst. Bks. 1746, 1751, 1783, 1784, 1799,
1804.
"7 Had. MS. 3688.
ASTON CLINTON CHURCH : THE Si IUI.IA
BIKRTON CHURCH : NAVE LOOKING EAST
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
ASTON CLINTON
1193, and probably granted this land to the chapel
during the reign of Henry II.1* It wai called
in the 1 3th century the chapel of St. Leonard of
Blakmere, and more land does not then seem to have
been attached to it."* Another account, by Lips-
comb, gives 1278 as the date of the foundation of the
chapel,100 when Bishop Gravesend of Lincoln, during
a visitation, granted to William de Clinton, patron of
the church of Aston, a chapel within the same parish."1
He apparently took a confirmation of an old grant
for the foundation itself, since the chapel was in
existence many yean before, and the last William de
Clinton had been dead more than fifty yean.*1 The
Montagus presented to the chapel after they had ob-
tained the manor of Aston Clinton, the king present-
ing in 1403, during the minority of Thomas, Earl of
Salisbury."* It was served by a stipendiary priest,
and at the time of the dissolution of the chantries
the messuage and land attached to the chapel were
worth 23/. a year."* There were at that time about
thirty-five 'houscling* people living in the hamlet of
St. Leonards,104 about 3 or 4 miles away from the
parish church, and the chapel seems to have escaped
dissolution since it thus served as a chapel of ease.
An inquisition was taken in 1570 to show why the
land had been unlawfully detained from the hands of
the Crown,"* but the tenants of the house and land,
Henry and Silvester Baldwin, successfully brought
forward the plea that the chapel was a necessity for
the hamlet."' The land was ihen worth $ot. a year,
and this was used for the repair of the chapel and the
support of the services there,108 and for the repair of
the highways. A grant was made to William Tipper
and Robert Dawe, the noted fishing grantees, of the
chapel and Chapel Farm."* It is mentioned in 1 640,"*
but after the Civil War the building was in ruins, only
the bare walls remaining. It was rebuilt by a loyalist,
Cornelius Wood, who endowed it with provision for
a minister exempt from the jurisdiction of the bishop
and archdeacon, and receiving his appointment solely
from the patron, without institution or induction."'
He placed the chapel and land in the hands of trus-
tees, who are also the patrons of the benefice. Tl c
chapelry was formed in 1860 into a separate ecclesi-
astical parish, and the living is a vicarage in the gift
of the trustees.
There is a Baptist chapel, built in 1830 and
rebuilt in 1846, and again in 1897.
The Poor's Land, devised by will
CHARITIES of Mrs. — Turpin, widow, an extract
from whose will was contained on a
tablet in the church, came into the possession of the
parish in 1736. The trust property consists of mea-
dow land containing 3 acres or thereabouts, let at
£10 i ;/. a year, and thirteen plots of garden allot-
ments producing £» ids. a year. The income it
applied, in accordance with the trust, in the distribu-
tion of loaves of bread.
The Church Estate, which it is understood was
originally derived under the will of Sir Gilbert Ger-
rard, bart., now consists of 7 a. 2 r. 4 p. at Broughton
near Aylesbury, known as Mepham's Land, let at
£16 1 6s. a year, and a moiety of a field in College
Road, Aston Clinton, let at £10 i;/. a year. The
net rent* are carried to the church expenses.
Ecclesiastical District of St. Leonards. — The Parlia-
mentary returns of 1786 mention that a rent-charge
of £\ per annum was given to the poor by an un-
known donor. The annuity is regularly paid by the
owner of DunJridj e Farm in this parish, and dis-
tributed in sums of I/, each to twenty poor persons
on St. Thomas's Day.
The Church Trust, founded by Thomas Plaistowe
by feoffment dated I September, 23 Hen. VII, it
regulated by a scheme of the Charity Commissioner!
of 1 5 December 1 896. The real estate consists of
the Chapel Farm, containing 1 1 9 acres or thereabouts,
and 27 a. 3 r. 21 p. at Whitchurch (Buckinghamshire)
let at £145 a year, 23 acres of woodland at Mcnt-
more (Buckinghamshire) in hand, and 3 cottages at
St. Leonards, let at £11 a year. The personal
estate (including a legacy of £IOO bequeathed by
will of Robert Fox, proved in 1 869) consists of
£2,667 1 5/. 6J. Canada 3} per cent, stock, and
£2,694 4-*- '^ South Australian 3^ per cent, stock,
the rents and dividends making a gross income of
£344 a year. The stock is held by the official trus-
tees. By the scheme the net income is applicable in
the payment to the churchwardens of any proper
charges for the maintenance and repair of the fabric
of the church, and the residue — subject to the pay-
ment of £10 a year for any public purpose for the
benefit of the inhabitants, and £10 a year to the
official trustees towards the formation of a ' Fabric
Fund' of not less than £200 consols — is received by
the incumbent.
>"> Roll, efKinjt Cl. (Pipe Roll Soc.), "• Cf. n
IMF, 127. *• Cat. .
minor of Alton Clinton.
, Pat. 1401-;, p. 140.
"• -Trm di Nrvill (Rec. Com.), 254*. *>' Chint. Cert. Bucks. 5, no. 65.
end*
1 Liptcomb, Hiir. of Bucki. ii, 93.
Line. Epii. Reg. Init. of Grim-
"» Ibid.
** Memoranda R. Paich. Rec. 1 1 Elli.
rot. 20.
** Ibid.
» Ibid.
•" Pat. J2 Elii. pt 4, m. I.
n» Cal. S.P. Dam. 1640-1, p. 3$.
ul Lipicomb, Hut. of Buck, ii, 94.
3'9
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
BIERTON (WITH BROUGHTON)
Burton (xiii cent.) ; Beerton (xv cent.).
Bierton parish lies in the Vale of Aylesbury, to the
north-east of Aylesbury parish. It contains 2,476^
acres,1 which are mainly laid down in permanent
grass, only about 396 acres being arable land.1 The
population is mainly employed on grazing farms ;
duck-breeding is also carried on to a very considerable
extent. The subsoil is Portland Beds and Kim-
meridge Clay, the surface clay.8 The land lies for the
most part between 200 ft. and 300 ft. above the
Ordnance datum, the highest point being only 2i4ft.4
The parish is well watered ; Thistle Brook forms the
northern boundary, and various streams rise near the
hamlet of Broughton, flowing northwards. There is
a moat at Manor Farm. The Aylesbury branch of
the Grand Junction Canal also crosses the parish.
The village of Bierton lies about a mile and a half
from Aylesbury, on the main road to Leighton
Buzzard. A branch road turns off at the north end
of the village to Hulcott. The village spreads along
the road, and is composed of modern houses, with one
or two of an older date, which are not of any par-
ticular interest. The church lies at the south-west
end of the village, and is surrounded by a small
churchyard, with a detached portion, now used, to
the east. The hamlet of Burcott almost forms a part
of the village, and consists of a few cottages and farm
houses. Broughton, another hamlet, comprises a row
of small cottages. The Aylesbury branch of the Lon-
don and North- Western Railway crosses the parish,
and the nearest station is at Aylesbury. The most
important house is Bierton House, the residence of
Mr. J. W. Grist. Various neolithic implements and
a British urn have been dug up at different times.6
The parishes of Bierton and Hulcott were inclosed
under the same Act of Parliament, and the award
is dated 15 July I78o.6
The manor of BIERTON was prob-
M4NORS ably held as parcel of the manor of
Aylesbury, which was in the hands of the
king at the time of the Domesday Survey.7 In 1258,
in a lawsuit as to lands in Bierton, the defendants did
not appear, pleading that the manor of Bierton was a
member of Aylesbury, which belonged to the ancient
demesne of the Crown, and that therefore they could
only be impleaded by a little writ of right-close.8
Aylesbury Manor was in the hands of the Mandevilles,
Earls of Essex, in the 1 2th century.9 A new grant
was made by King John to his favourite Geoffrey
Fitz Piers of the manor with its appurtenances at an
increased rental.10 Geoffrey was to hold it with the
same right and exemptions that Earl William de
Mandeville had had. This probably included the
manor of Bierton, since Fitz Piers' grandson and suc-
cessor," Lord Richard Fitz John, died seised before
1297 of the manor of Aylesbury with the hamlet of
1 Ord. Surv.
* Information supplied by Bd. of Agric.
(1905).
• V.C.H. Bucks, i, Geological Map.
BIERTON CHURCH FROM THE NORTH
4 0 d. Surv.
* y.C.H.Buck,\, 192.
8 Com. Inch Aivards.
^ y. C.H.Bucks, i, 231.
320
8 Assize R. no. 1188.
9 Cart. Antiq. A A. 23.
« Ibid.
11 G.E.C. Complete Peerage.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
Bierton." Bierton was assigned to his widow Emma
to hold in dower, but his possessions were finally
divided among his four sisters or their heirs." Trie
manor of Bierton was assigned to Joan the wife of
Theobald le Botiller, and it has ever since been held
by her descendants or their successors as appendant to
the manor of Aylesbury (q.v.).'4 The mano:s of
Aylesbury and Bicrton are at the present day in the
hands of the trustees of the late Mr. John Parker.
Certain lands and rents in Bierton and Aylcsbury
were assigned to Richard de Burgh, Earl of Ulster,
on the partition of Richard Fitz John's lands," and
these were afterwards known as the manor of BIER-
TON afia, BIERTON and HULCOTT. Richard
de Burgh received the reversion of 9$ virgates of land,
the suit and service of certain tenants in villeinage,
and rent to the amountof £10 01. <)\J., to fall tohim
on the death of t'mma the widow of Richard Fitz
John. He died before this reversion fell in, leaving
his son William as his heir." The latter was a minor,
and the king in 1333 committed his lands and rents
in Bierton to Elizabeth de Burgh to hold during the
young earl's minority." The latter died the next
year seised of rent in Bierton, which was held by his
widow in dower." His only daughter and heiress
Elizabeth was one year old at his death." She after-
wards married Lionel, Duke of Clarence, the third
son of Edward III." Their only daughter and heiress
Philippa married Edmund Mortimer, Earl of March
and Ulster," who died seised of the manor of Whad-
don (part of the possessions of Richard Fitz John),
'with its members of Bierton and Amersham.'" His
heir Roger was a minor at the time of his father's
death. Roger was killed in I 398, and his son Ed-
mund died in 1424.— 5." His possessions passed to
his nephew Richard Duke of York," and from him
descended to Edward IV. The manor of Bierton
was granted by the king in 1461 to his mother
Cecily Duchess of York, for life, in recompense for her
jointure." Richard III confirmed this grant," and
in 1492 the reversion of the manor was granted to
her granddaughter Elizabeth of York for her jointure
on her marriage with Henry VII." After her death
her sisters and co-heiresses, Katherine Courtenay,
Countess of Devon, and Anne Howard, claimed the
manor, but in 151 I * it was settled on Henry VIII
as the son and heir of Elizabeth. Katherine of Aragon
held lands and rents in Bicrton," and the manor was
granted in turn to Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves,
and Katherine Howard." After the execution of the
last-named queen the manor of Bicrton remained in
the hands of the Crown until James I in 1603
granted it to Anne of Denmark as part of her dower."
After the death of the queen the manor was granted
BIERTON
to Sir Henry Hobarc and others" as trustees for
Prince Charles, afterwards Charles I. Soon after his
accession to the throne it was released to the mayor
and citizens of London as security for a loan of
money,™ and was to be held at the accustomed rent.
In 1650 Thomas Greene bought this rent from the
trustees for the sale of the fee-farm rents, formerly
payable to the Crown." Six yean later he was said to
be a lunatic, but his heir was unknown, so that the rent
presumably again came into the hands of the Govern-
ment." After the Restoration, Sir Allan Appesley is
said by Lipscomb" to have conveyed the fee-farm
rent of £10 izi. %\J. issuing out of the manor of
Bicrton to Thomas Morlcy, who reconveycd it to
Timothy Neale in 1675." The same historian also
mentions a sale of the manor itself by Alexander Hawkins
to Timothy Neale," and the Neales certainly held the
manor of Biei ton some years later. John Neale was
seised in 1719,™ together with the manor of Hul-
cott (q.v.), and from this time these manors have
been held together, and are now in the possession of
Mr. Leopold de Rothschild.
The family of Stonors held lands in Bicrton which
were afterwards called the manor of STONORS afiai
STONORS CROFT afiai BIERTON-STONORS. In
1325 John de Stonor and his
son Richard held lands in
Aylesbury, Walton, Bierton,
Hulcott, and Caldecott.40 In
an inquisition taken in 1336"
it was found that John de
Stonor, after making certain
grants in mortmain, would
keep the manor of Bierton -
Stonors, from which he could
perform his foreign services.
He held it by military service
of the Earl of Ormond. He
died in 1354, >c'scd °f lands
and tenements in the township of Bierton.0 His son
and heir was John de Stonor, but in i 370 Edmund de
Stonor " granted an annual rent out of the manor to
the Bishop of Winchester. John de Stonor, son and heir
of Edmund, died" seised of rents in Bierton in 1389.
His brother and heir Ralph de Stonor granted the
manor of Bierton-Stonors to William Sutton of Cam-
den4* and others, but this was presumably only a
mortgage,4* since the manor was afterwards recovered
by the Stonors. Gilbert the son and heir of Ralph
de Stonor was a minor at the time of his father's
death," and he died while still in the king's wardship
in 1396." The manor of Bierton-Stonors is not
mentioned among his lands in an inquisition taken
in 14 16," so that it was probably still in the hands
A/W
STONOR. Aairt nut
ban danctlty or and a
ckitf argint.
11 Chan. Inq. p.m. 15 Edw. I, no. 504.
>• Ibid.
« G.E.C. Cam f lilt Pitragi ; Col. Clou,
•Jjo-l. P- 5°'; ArcbanhfM, I, 935
L. and P. //«.. rill, iT (2), 734 (14) ;
Feet oi F. Buckt. Trin. 30 Hen. VIII ;
ibid. Mich. < Jat. I.
'• Ctl. Clou, 1330-3, p. 501.
" Ibid. >? Ibid.
u Chan. Inq. p.m. 7 Edw. Ill (lit
not,), no. 39 ; Ctl. Clou, 1333-7, p. 148.
" Chan. Inq. p.m. 7 Edw. Ill (lit
not.), no. 39.
" G.E.C. Com f lilt Pitrap.
11 Chan. Inq. p.m. 43 Edw. Ill (pi. i),
no. 13.
" Ibid. 5 Ric. II, no. 43.
* G.E.C. Comfliu Peeragi ; Chan. Inq.
p.m. 12 Ric. II, no. 34 ; 3 Hen. VI, no.
3». * Ibid.
M Ctl. Pat. 1461-7, p. 131.
" Pat. 1 Ric. Ill, pt. v.
* Ptrl. K. (Rec. Com.), vi, 4634.
» Feet of F. Dir. Co. Mich. 3 Hen.
VIII.
*• L. ma P. Htm. rill, i, 1 5 5.
*° Ibid, avi, 107 (9) ; ibid, iv, 144(1);
Pat. 31 Urn. VIII, pi. 6.
11 Pat. I J.H. I, pt. 10 ; Chan. Inq.
p.m. (Ser. i), cccvii, no. 93.
" Pat. 17 Jai. I, pt. I.
* Ibid. 4 Chat. I, pt. 35.
" Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. i), Mite, dir,
no. 169.
32I
•» Ibid.
" Ilia, ef Built, ii, 100.
*> Cote, 17 Chai. II, pt. 17, no. 17.
" Hnt.of Biaki. ii, 100.
M RCCOT. R. Mich. 9 Geo. I.
* Feet of F. Buckt. Mich. 19 Edw. II.
41 Chan. Inq. p.m. 10 Edw. Ill, no.
4'-
a Ibid. | Chan. Inq. p.m. iS Edw. Ill
(nt not.), no. 58.
« Clote, 44 Edw. Ill, m. 4, c.
M Chan. Inq. p.m. 13 Ric. II, no. 48.
u Coram Rege R. Mich. 10 Ric. II, TV.
16, Rex.
M Clow, 14 Ric. II, m. 38 d.
4" Chan. Inq. p.m. 3 Hen. V, no. 34.
«• Ibid. « Ibid.
41
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
VERNEY. Azure a
cross argent -with fvt
pierced mole ft gules there-
on.
of mortgagees. His heir was his brother Thomas,
who came of age in that year,40 and probably recovered
the manor. Another Thomas de Stonor, presumably
his heir, together with his wife Joan, sold it in
14.69 M to Sir Ralph Verney and others. Sir Ralph,
who died in 1478, was seised of lands and tenements
in Bierton, but it is probable that he had settled the
manor on his second son, another Sir Ralph Verney.6*
The latter died seised of the
manor and had settled it on
John Cheyne " and others to
hold, to the use of his wife
Eleanor for her life, and then
to the use of John Verney
his son and his issue. John
died before 1549," leaving a
daughter Mary as his heir.
His widow Dorothy entered
the manor on his death, and
a long lawsuit " was brought
against her by Mary, who
had married Lewis Reynolds.
The result is not given, but
in 1552 Dorothy Verney and Lewis Reynolds
sold the manor for ^236 to Leonard Chamber-
lain, Robert Woodiest, and William Howse." The
manor of Bierton-Stonors shortly afterwards passed
into the possession of John Bosse, who died in 1 5 5 8,"
seised of lands called Stonors in Bierton. In the in-
quisition taken after his death it is impossible to dis-
cover if his property was called a manor or not. His
son Richard was his heir," and he held lands and
rent in Bierton in 1585." Some years later Sir
Edmund Verney made a claim for the lands of his
ancestors in Bierton, and sued Samuel Bosse and
Francis Howse.M Samuel was the son of Richard
Bosse,61 and he held the manor of Bierton-Stonors at
the time of this lawsuit in I598.6* The result is not
given, but the plaintiff lost his case, since Samuel
Bosse continued in possession. He died seised of a
capital messuage6* in Bierton. John Bosse was his
son and heir,64 but Bierton-Stonors was settled in
1614" by Samuel on his second son Thomas on his
marriage with Grace Butterfield. Thomas Bosse held
it in 1637 and died seised in the same year.'6 His
heir does not appear, but the manor afterwards became
united with the manor of Waynford (q.v.), passing to
the family of Howse, possibly through the Temples.67
It had passed to one of the Howse family before
1 6 70,68 from which date the name of Waynford is
rarely used, their manor being called in that year the
manor of Bierton.
William Waynford held land in Bierton during
the reign of Henry VI,69 which was afterwards
known as ff^rNFORD'S Manor. On the accession
of Edward IV Waynford forfeited his lands, having
been an active partisan of the Lancastrian party
during the Wars of the Roses. In consequence his
lands were granted in 1462 to Thomas Seyntleger for
life,69a but in 1467 Sir Ralph Verney70 obtained a
grant of them for himself and the heirs of his body, to
hold by military service. The grant consisted of
three messuages and 150 acres of land and meadow.
Waynford's Manor appears to have passed like Bierton-
Stonors to Ralph the younger son of the first Sir
Ralph Verney and then to his son and heir John.71
On the death of this John Verney 7> his widow
Dorothy held Waynford's Manor, but it is also said to
have been sold by Sir Ralph Verney, presumably the
father of John, to Robert Woodlyfe,7* who immedi-
ately sold it to William Howse for no profit because
he found his title was defective.74 There is, however,
considerable obscurity about the history of the Verney
lands in Bierton at this time, but William Howse
certainly seems to have obtained Waynford's Manor
before 1553." In that year he obtained a quitclaim
from Edmund Verney,76 the direct descendant of the
eldest son of the first Sir Ralph Verney,77 who was
also the heir of the younger branch of which the last
representative was Mary Reynolds. The brother and
heir of this Edmund Verney, himself Edmund by
name,7* attempted to recover Waynford's Manor at
the same time as Bierton-Stonors in 1598." Francis
Howse, the son of William Howse, held it at that
time *° and retained it against Sir Edmund's attacks.
Thomas Howse of Bierton was summoned to make
proof of his arms and gentry in 1634," an<^ was Pre"
sumably a descendant of Fran-
cis. He was returned as a
papist and delinquent under
the Commonwealth, and his
estates in Bierton were seques-
tered.81 He died before 1647,
when they were valued for
the Committee for Compound-
ing at £60 a year.83 In
1 670" John Howse and his
wife Martha held the manor.
In 1697" their son and heir
was Finch Howse, and in
1756 John Temple Howse
and his wife Mary had suc-
ceeded to the manor.8* In 1 801 the manor of Bierton-
Stonors with Waynford was bought by the Marquis
of Buckingham,87 afterwards Duke of Buckingham
and Chandos. It was sold with the greater part
of his property in the middle of the igth century,
but the name of the manor is now lost, and it
does not seem possible to identify the land which it
comprised.
GRENVILLE, Duke of
Buckingham and Chan-
dos. Vert a cross argent
viith Jive roundels gules
thereon.
60 Chan. Inq. p.m. 3 Hen. V, no. 34.
« Feet of F. Buckt. East. 9 Edw. IV.
62 Memoirs of the Verney Family, i.
" Ct. of Requests, bdle. iv, no. 3.
64 Common Pleat, D. Enr. Ea»t. Z
Edw. VI, no. 8.
65 Ct. of Requests, bdle. iv, no. 3.
» Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 5 Edw. VI.
57 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), cxviii,
no. 4.
•* Ibid.
69 Feet of F. Bucks. East. 27 Eliz.
60 Exch. Dep. by Com. Mich. 40 &4I
Eliz. no. 14.
'} Exch. Com. no. 460.
68 Exch. Dep. by Com. Mich. 40*41
Eliz. no. 14.
61 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), dviii, no. 21.
" Ibid. «* Ibid.
M Feet of F. Bucks. East. 13 Chas. I ;
Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), cccclxxxv, no.
S6o.
«7 Feet of F. Bucks. East. 1 3 Chas. I.
48 RecoT. R. East. 22 Chas. II.
69 Cat. Pat. 1461-7, p. 77.
•" Ibid.
7° Ibid. 1467-77. P- 33-
71 Memoirs of the Verney Family, i.
7» Exch. Dep. by Com. Bucks. Mich.
40 & 41 Eliz. no. 14.
322
» Ibid. » Ibid.
" Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. I Mary.
?• Ibid.
7" Memoirs of the Verney Family, i.
T« Ibid.
7' Exch. Dep. by Com. Bucks. Mich.
40 Si 41 Eliz. no. 14.
» Ikid.
11 Ctl. S.P. Dam. 1634-5, p. 167.
*' Ctl. tfCtm.fir CemfotinJing, 68.
«• Ibid.
** Recor. R. East. 22 Chas. II.
85 Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 9 Will. III.
86 Ibid. Mil. 29 Geo. II.
8? Lysons, Magne Brit, i, 510.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
BIERTON
Before the Norm.m Conquest," Edward, a thegn
of King Edward the Confessor, held the greater part
of the township of BROUGHTON, and could $ell his
manor there at will. It was then (T.R.E.) worth
£ i o a ye.ir. At the time of the Domesday Survey
William de Warcnne, Earl of Surrey, was lord of the
manor, which had depreciated in value by £2."
Presumably it descended to his son and grandson in
turn, and then to Isabella,10 the heiress of the
Warennes, since her husband, William, Count of
Boulogne, the second son of King Stephen, confirmed
a charter granting land in Broughton " to Missenden
Abbey. This grant resulted in the division of the
township into two parts, and the manor remaining
with the Count of Boulogne was known as the manor
of BROUGHTON PARVA alias HOLAND alias
LOVEL alias STAVELT. At the death of the
count his lands escheated to the Crown," and the
manor was presumably not alienated until either
Henry III or Edward I granted it to Edmund, Earl
of Lancaster, the second son of Henry III. He
died seised of the manor of Broughton Parva in
1295," and it descended to his son Thomas, Earl
THOM.»«, Earl of
Lincaiter. ENG-
LAND •wilka lattlof
FRANCE.
H o L A N 0. Avturt
ptnodertd with jleuri-dt-
lil a Hot argtnt.
of Lancaster," who subinfendatcd it, but from this
time it was held of the earldom or duchy of Lan-
caster."
The earl granted the manor about 1320 to Robert
de Holand M and his wife Maud, but when his lands
were seized, after his execution by Edward II, the
Holands were dispossessed of Broughton Parva."
Maud de Hol.md and her son Robert petitioned
Edward III in 1328 to recover their lands, and were
successful in obtaining them." Since the earldom of
Lancaster was in the king's hands at this time, he
held the manor during the minority " of the young
Robert de Holand. Maud seems, however, to have
recovered the manor, possibly after her son had come
of age, and she died seised in 1 349."" It seems
probable that she had granted it for life or a term of
fUWl
AAAA
OAAA
Lovtu Barr
or and gulti.
yean to her younger son Thomas, afterwards Earl of
Kent. Thomas held it in 1 346,"" and after the death
of his mother obtained a renewal of the grant "* of
the manor for life from his brother. On the death
of Thomas in 1361 '" it reverted to Robert de
Holand, who died seised of it in 1373 ; lo* his son,
another Robert de Holand, had predeceased him,
leaving a daughter Matilda as his heir. She married
Sir John Lovel,'06 and the
manor of Broughton Parva
passed to them on the death
of her grandfather."* Sir
John Lovel, their son and
heir, succeeded his mother in
possession of the manor, and
also died seised in 1413."'
Another John Lovel, a minor,
was his son and heir,"" but
probably a mistake was made
in the inquisition on his lands,
made after the death of
Sir John, as a William Lovel "* succeeded to the
estates. The manor of Broughton Parva was, how-
ever, held by his mother Eleanor for life,"11 but he
granted the reversion to Henry Archbishop of Can-
terbury, Alice Lady Deyncourt, and others."1 After-
wards, by a further grant, Sir William Lovel trans-
ferred it to William Tresham and his heirs, on condi-
tion that the latter would give up certain deeds that
were in his charge, between Sir William and Sir
John Radcliff.1" The two survivors of the first grant,
John Potter and John Waget, also transferred their
right "* in the manor to William Tresham to hold to
him and his heirs and assigns. On the death of Sir
William Lovel in 1454'" his son Sir John Lovel
was his heir, and in 1461 "* he obtained a ratification
of the manor of Broughton Parva, of which he was
said to be seised in fee-tail, but no descendant of his
appears to have held any further right in the manor.
William Tresham died seised in 1450,'" and was suc-
ceeded by Thomas Tresham, his son and heir. The
latter sold the manor in 1 466 '" to William Stavely,
from whom the manor obtained its fourth name. In
1495 "* Stavely made a settlement of it to the use of
himself and his wife Alice for life, and then to the
use of his son George Stavely. Alice died in 1500'"
seised of the manor, which passed to George Stavely,
who settled it on himself and his wife Isabel by
charter in 1523 ; "° he held it till his death in 1525,"'
when his son and heir John succeeded him. John
Stavely mortgaged Broughton Parva '" to Thomas
Walker and Simon Lowe, two London merchants, but
in I 544 a sale of the manor was made by Stavely,
Walker, and Lowe1" to Alice Baldwin, daughter of
Sir John Baldwin, for £340. In a copy of the will
T.C.tf. Butk,. 1,252*.
» Ibid.
• G.E.C. ComfltH Peirtp.
>l Harl. MS. 3688.
n C.E.C. Comfliu Pitrtp.
M Chan. Inq. p.m. 2; Edw. I, Ju.
w Cat. Par. 1317-21, p. 431.
M Chan. Inq. p.m. 13 Edw. Ill (pt. i),
no. 58.
•• Ctl. Pal. 1317-11, p. 431.
"I Purl. R. (Rcc. Com.}, ii, 29*.
» Ibid.
H Cat, Clot, 1327-30, p. 248.
100 Chan. Inq. p.m. 2} Edw. Ill (pt. i),
no. 58.
101 Feud, jiidi, i, 124.
101 Chan. Inq. p.m. 3 5 Edw. Ill (pt. I ),
no. 104.
"• Ibid.
>« Ibid. 47 Edw. Ill, file 233 (lit not.),
no. 19.
"» Ibid.
w Ibid. 9 Hen. IV, no. 29.
">•• Ibid. 2 Hen. V, no. 30.
"» Ibid.
X" Clow, 8 Hen. VI, m. 6.
"« Ibid.
"i Ibid. { Chan. Inq. p.m. 33 Hen. VI,
no. 28.
"» Ibid.
323
10.
114
IU
111
10.
iw
iu
Chin
11>
l*t
in
in
i
VIII
1 Chan. Inq. p.m. 34 Hen. VI, no.
Ibid. 33 Hen. VI, no. 28.
Cal. Pa. 1461-7, p. 8 5.
Chan. Inq. p.m. 34 Hen. VI, no.
Anct. D., A. 684.
Feet oft. Bucki. II Hen. VII;
Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), xix, no. 64.
Ibid.
Ibid, lux, no. 126.
Ibid.
Clou, 35 Hen. VIII.pt. 2, no. 70.
Feet of F. Buck*. EaM. 36 Hen.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
of Sir John it appears, however, that he bought the
manor from John Stavely, but that he put his daugh-
ter Alice,1" together with William Welshe and John
Gelly, in seisin. Sir John Baldwin's lands "5 were in-
herited by his two grandsons and co-heirs, Thomas
Pakington and John Burlace,186 and at the division of
his lands between them Broughton Parva came to
Thomas Pakington."7 His descendants held the manor
until 1 80 1,188 when Sir John Pakington sold it to
the Duke of Buckingham and Chandos.129 On the
sale of the duke's lands it was bought by Mr.
Tindal,130 at the same time as the manor of Bierton,
and is now in the hands of the trustees of the late
Mr. John Parker.
In 1616-17 James I111 granted the manor of
Broughton Parva to Richard Goodwin and Hugh
Dashfield, their heirs and assigns, for £110 and the
rent of I z marks a year. They may, however, have
been fishing grantees, since they never had seisin of the
manor, which was held at that time by the Paking-
tons, a rental of whose tenants exists for the year
1627.'"
The Earl of Lancaster183 granted the manor of
Broughton Parva to Robert de Holand and his wife
in fee-tail. Matilda held it 134 by the service of pay-
ing one rose a year to the Earl of Lancaster, but the
military service from half a knight's fee was also due
to the king, and was performed by her son Thomas
de Holand.1"
Sir William Level and William Tresham,136 how-
ever, are said to have held the manor of John New-
port, and Tresham paid the rent of I Ib. of cummin.
Alice the widow of William Stavely l37 held of the
king as of the duchy of Lancaster by fealty and the
rent of I ^d. a year. By the time of Sir Thomas
Pakington, who died in 1 57 1,138 the tenure was un-
known, and presumably all payment of rent to the
duchy had ceased during the many changes of owner-
ship in the 1 5th century.
The Pakingtons held the view of frankpledge "9 in
Broughton Parva all the time that the manor was
in their possession.140 In 1772 Ul a free fishery there
is also mentioned.
In the first half of the 1 2th century various aliena-
tions were made of lands in Broughton to the abbey
of Missenden, which afterwards formed the manor of
BROUGHTON MAGNA or ABBOTS, BROUGH-
TON. Hugh de Gurney granted his whole tene-
ment to Missenden u> with the consent of his wife
Milicent and his son Hugh. He held of Robert
Maunsel, who made an agreement with the canons as
to the service due from the tenement, and the Count
of Boulogne confirmed both grants. The manor of
Abbot's Broughton was held by the abbey until its
dissolution in I538.143 Three years later the king
granted it to Sir John Baldwin,144 from whom it de-
scended, like Broughton Parva, to Thomas Pakington,
and was held by his descendants during the 1 7th
century. In 1665-6 Sir John Pakington, bart., and
his wife Dorothy 14S granted a lease of the manor to
John Backwell for ninety-nine years, for the rent of
one grain of pepper, in return for £200. Various
assignments of this lease appear to have been made ;
in 1670'" William Reeve and his wife Sarah, to-
gether with Edward Backwell, quitclaimed the manor
to Thomas Bowdler for £240, but in the next year I4'
they sold the manor and farm to Henry Johnson.
The latter also seems to have obtained the manor
from Sir John Pakington 148 and his son and heir,
another John Pakington. Its subsequent history is
obscure, but it seems to have afterwards come into
the possession of William Meade.149 He sold it
in 1721— 2 1=0 to the trustees of Aylesbury Grammar
School, who bought the manor of Abbot's Broughton )5'
with part of the money given in 1 7 1 4 by Mr. Henry
Philips for the re-endowment of the school. The
trustees held it in i8i3,15> and are the lords of the
manor at the present day.
The manor of Abbot's Broughton was held by the
abbey of Missenden in frankalmoign, apparently in
chief of the king.153 Sir John Baldwin, however, held
it as one-tenth of a knight's fee, and paid a yearly rent
The abbot and canons of Missenden obtained a
grant 1M of free warren in their demesne lands in
Broughton in 1301—2, which was confirmed by
Henry VI.156 The abbot also held a view of frank-
pledge in 1254,'" and paid 121. for hidage from
Broughton and Hulcott, which then formed one
township.
A mill is mentioned at Broughton in Domesday
Book,"8 being then worth los a year, and a water-
mill is mentioned in an extent of the manor of
Broughton Parva in I296.1" The abbey of Missen-
den held a mill in Broughton,180 which was granted to
it before 1330. In 1721—2 a mill is mentioned161 in
connexion with the manor of Abbot's Broughton.
In the time of Edward the Confessor one hide and
three virgates of land in BORTONE was held by two
sokemen,16' one a man of Alwin Varus and the other
of Earl Leofwine. This has been identified with
Bierton in the Domesday Survey,163 but from its post-
Conquest history it seems more probable that the land
lay in Broughton. In 1086 it was held by the
Bishop of Bayeux, who had subinfeudated it to a
tenant named Roger.164 As overlord and tenant the
bishop and Roger also held Weston Turville and Bed-
grave,165 and it seems most probable that this land
144 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), Ixxiii, no. 7.
116 Ibid, clvi, no. I.
1M Feet of F. Bucks. East. 5 Edw. VI.
11? Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccccxviii,
no. 69.
1M Recov. R. Mich. 1 5 Chas. I ; Feet of
F. Bucks. East. 4 Will, and Mary ; ibid.
Trin. 7 Geo. I ; Recov. R.East. 32 Geo.II j
Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 13 Geo. III.
lat Lysons, Magn* Brit, i, 510.
130 Sheahan, Hist. *nd Tafog. of Bucks.
95, 103.
181 Pat. 14 Jas. I, pt. z.
1M Cott. MS. I, 4.
"» Cat. Clou, 1327-30, p. 248.
184 Chan. Inq. p.m. 23 Edw. II (pt i),
no. 58.
185 Feud. Aids, i, 124.
188 Chan. Inq. p.m. 33 Hen. VI, no.
28 } ibid. 34 Hen. VI, no. 10.
187 Ibid. (Ser. 2), xix, no. 64.
188 Ibid. (Ser. 2), clvi, no. 1.
189 Cott. MS. I, 4.
'« Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. 7 Geo. I j
ibid. Mich. 13 Geo. III.
141 Ibid.
'« Had. MS. 3688.
141 Valor Eccl. iv, 246 j L. and P. Hn.
A7/7, xvi, 779(8). '« Ibid.
145 Feet of F. Bucks. Hit. 17 & 18
Chas. II.
"• Ibid. Hil. 22 & 23 Chas. II.
14< Close, 24 Chas. II, pt. I, m. 9.
148 Recov. R. Trin. 25 Chas. II.
324
"> Feet of F. Bucks. Hil. 8 Geo. I.
l*> Ibid.
161 Lysons, Magna Brit, i, 510.
1M Ibid.
'M Harl. MS. 3688 ; Feud. Aid!, i, 1 125
Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
ls< Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), Ixxiii, no. 7.
lss Chart R. 30 Edw. I, no. 95, m. 5,
no. 32.
151 Cal. Pat. 1422-9, p. 344.
157 Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
l™ y.C.H.Bucks.'\, 252*.
lw Chan. Inq. p.m. 25 Edw. I, no. 51*1.
«• Harl. MS. 3688.
"l Feet of F. Bucks. Hil. 8 Geo. I.
«" Ibid.
1(>4 Ibid.
i« Ibid.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
BIERTON
followed the descent of the manor of Weston Tur-
ville."* Part of the land belonging to the manor of
Weston Butlers, afterwards united to the manor of
Weston Turville,"7 lay in Broughton, and part of
Broughton, like Weston Turville, belonged to the
duchy of Lancaster."*
The church of ST. JJMES is a cruci-
CHURCH form structure, the internal measure-
ments of which are as follows : Chancel,
1 4 ft. 6 in. by 21 ft. 9 in. ; central tower about 1 3 ft.
9 in. square ; north transept, 17 ft. by 1 6 ft. 3 in. ;
south transept, 1 6 ft. Sin. square ; nave, 1 7 ft. 6 in.
by 5 2 ft. ; in. ; and north and south aisles, 7 ft. 3 in.
wide, with a north porch.
The church appears to have been built complete
about the middle of the 141)1 century, since which
time practically nothing has been done to alter the
plan. At a late date, perhaps in 1636, the
original high-pitched roof over the nave and aisles
was removed and a low-pitched roof put in its
place, the aisle walls being heightened and an upper
part of an Easter sepulchre, and of the same date as
the chancel. The only window in this wall is also
original. It is of two trefoilcd lights with tracery in
the form of trefoils with a quatrefoil over. The rear
arch and the jambs of the internal splay are moulded
with a broad wave mould, and there are internal and
external labels with drips in the form of heads. At
the east end of the south wall is a piscina with shafted
jambs and moulded two-centred head, all considerably
restored ; and in this wall is also a duplicate of the
north window already described. The roof of the
chancel is a modern one of steep pitch.
The central tower is carried on four large clustered
piers and arches of three simply moulded orders, the
western arch having a label towards the nave.
The tower stair is in the north-east angle of the
south transept, entered from the transept, and the
belfry windows are plain pointed openings filled with
luffer boards. The tower finishes with a low roof and
a plain parapet which projects on corbels carved with
ball-flowers. The steeple it said to have fallen in a
Scale . of . feet
PLAN or BIERTON CHURCH
tier of windows inserted in them — probably to light
galleries. It is probable that the roofs of the
transepts were also treated in this way at the same
time, but the whole church was reroofed about the
middle of the 1 9th century. The windows have also
been altered at various dates from the 1 5th century
to the present day. But despite these various altera-
tions and additions the church remains a notable
example of c. 1330-40, the nave arcades and the
arches of the tower being particularly handsome in
proportion and well thought-out in detail, while the
tracery of inch of the original windows as remain is of
the best character.
The east window is of three cinquefoiled lights with
ijth-century tracery, and is a modern insertion, the
head and defaced moulded jambs and rear arch of the
original and wider 14th-century window still being
visible. On either side of this are image niches also
of 14th-century date with cinquefoiled heads. In the
north wall of the chancel is a fairly large niche with
moulded jambs and a moulded trefoiled head, possibly
report of the church made in 1636, and its present
upper stage is probably a rebuilding of that date.
The north transept contains one much-restored
ijth-ccntury north window of three cinquefoiled
lights, under a four-centred head. There are no east
or west windows ; the arch to the north aisle is of
two plain chamfered orders the outer of which is con-
tinuous, the inner having half-octagonal moulded
capitals like those of the nave arcades.
The south transept has a south window like that in
the north transept, with traces in its jambs and head
of the original 14th-century light. In this transept
are two doors, one to the tower stair and the other
external. The former has a trefoiled head and a
crocketed label of late 14th-century date, and seems
to have been added after the church was completed,
the label cutting into the respond of the tower arch.
The external door is in the south wall and has a plain
four-centred head. It has been cut through the back
of a single sedile, evidently part of the original fittings,
with an ogee cinquefoiled head, a crocketed and
Ct WC.IOQ Tnmlle.
^ fW. AUt, i, 86.
325
"• D. of Line. Miic-bdle. 6, no. 15.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
finialed hood-mould and small side buttresses orna-
mented with traceried panelling. The underside of
the head is carved to imitate rib-vaulting. There is
also a moulded 14th-century image bracket on the
east wall with two mail-clad heads supporting it.
The nave arcades are of four bays, the piers being
composed of four half-round shafts with moulded
fillets between, and having circular moulded bases and
capitals similar to, but not identical with, those of the
tower piers. The arches are two-centred, and of two
orders, both of which, towards the nave, are moulded
with a deep hollow between two small square fillets,
and two wave-moulds, while towards the aisles the
mouldings are simplified to a wave-mould on each
order. The arches have also labels towards the nave
similar to that over the western tower arch, with
grotesque heads as drips at the east end, and grotesque
heads are inserted in the crowns of the western pair
of arches. The west door, also original, has a two-
centred head, both head and jambs being continuously
moulded with an elaborate section of wave-moulds,
hollows and fillets worked on a splayed face. There
is also an external label. The west window of the
nave is a 1 5th-century insertion with a deep hollow
moulded external reveal, a four-centred head and
label and four cinquefoiled lights with tracery above.
The roof of the nave is modern, of low pitch, and
continued over the aisles, but the trace of the original
steep-pitched roof of the nave is clearly visible on the
west wall of the tower, and from this it is evident
that the north and south walls of the nave retain
their original height, while a change in the masonry
of the north aisle, visible where the external rough-
cast has fallen away, suggests that the aisles were
originally roofed at about half their present height,
the old nave roof running over them without a break.
The north aisle contains two original three-light
windows, both with wave-moulded rear arches, and
internal and external labels. The western of these
two windows has, however, lost its original net tracery,
and now has clumsy mullions and transoms of late date.
The north door between these windows is similar
in detail to the west door, but has been much de-
faced. Above the door and windows are three two-
light clearstory windows, insertions of late 15th-cen-
tury style with cinquefoiled lights under a flat head,
but probably dating from the I Jth century.
The south aisle has two two-light windows, the
western one being similar to the corresponding win-
dow on the north, both as to the original opening and
the inserted tracery, while the second window is a
replica of the north and south windows of the chancel.
The original south door between these windows is
blocked, while the clearstory over them has three
two-light windows of I yth-century date, with rounded
uncusped heads, plainer than those in the north aisle,
as not being visible from the road. The north porch
is a comparatively recent addition of timber, lath, and
plaster. On the south wall of the chancel is a wall
monument to Samuel Bosse 'of Byrton,' the founder
of a local charity, and his wife Cecily, nine sons, and
four daughters. The circular font is rather plain, with
a cable moulding round the top, and of late 12th-
century date.
There are six bells by Briant of Hertford, the
tenor of 1809, and the rest of 1816, and there is also
a small sanctus bell cast by Richard Chandler in 1678.
The church plate consists of a chalice of 1693, a
standing paten of 1718, a flagon of 1729, bequeathed
by the Rev. John Sambee, vicar of Bierton, who died
in 1728, and an interesting small mediaeval paten
without marks of any kind bearing the vernicle within
a sunk quatrefoil. It has originally been parcel gilt,
but the gold is almost entirely worn away.
The first book of the registers contains baptisms
and burials from 1560, and marriages from 1563, the
latter two classes of entry continuing to 1723, and
the burials to 1688, from which time they are con-
tinued in a separate book, containing notices of the
affidavits of burial in woollen, to 1809. A third
book contains baptisms and marriages from 1723 to
1757 and 1753 respectively, while a fourth book
contains baptisms from 1758 to 1809, and a fifth
baptisms and burials from 1810 to 1813, and there
is a printed book of marriages by banns from 1754 to
1812.
The chapel of Bierton originally
ADVQWSQN belonged to the prebend of Ayles-
bury. In 1266 Richard, Bishop of
Lincoln,169 with the consent of Master William de
Shirewode, rector of the prebendal church, granted
the chapel to the Dean and Chapter of Lincoln. The
reason of the grant is to be found in the poverty of
the cathedral chapter, while the prebend was said to
abound in temporalities. This grant was confirmed
in 1315 "' by Edward II.
Besides the chapel of Bierton, the chapels of Buck-
land,1" Stoke Mandeville, and Quarrendon were at
the same time detached from the parent church of
Aylesbury and granted to the Dean and Chapter. The
grantees obtained the ordination of a vicarage for the
four chapels during the episcopate of Bishop Sutton "*
(1290-9). Bierton, however, seems always to have
been the principal church, the other three being ap-
pendant chapels. In 1535"* the benefice was called
' Bierton with members,' and consisted of the church
at Bierton with the chapels of Broughton, of the value
of £20 a year, Buckland locv., Stoke Mandeville with
Stoke Hailing £10, Quarrendon £6 13*. 4</. There
were also tenements in Bierton worth 2O/., and a cot-
tage worth 4/. belonging to the benefice.
In i636,174 the church of Bierton was in a ruinous
condition, the steeple having fallen down. The repairs
were estimated to cost 200 marks, to the raising of
which the inhabitants of the hamlet of Quarrendon
should have contributed, since they did ' their Chris-
tian duties ' at the church of Bierton. The Dean and
Chapter of Lincoln 1/s have been patrons of the living
ever since the first grant in 1266. The presentations
of the vicar were made in the early part of the I gth
century to the ' vicarage of Bierton, with Buckland
and Stoke Mandeville,' 176 but they were separated in
l858,1" and Bierton now forms a separate benefice, in
the gift of the Dean and Chapter.
There are two references to a chapel at Broughton,
but there are no traces of its existence at the present
day. Originally it was one of the two chapels appen-
dant to the church of Weston Turville, and is men-
"» Cal. tat. 1313-17, p. Si.
17° Ibid. 171 Ibid.
W* Line. Epi«. Reg. Inst. Sutton, foU
I ltd.
17» Valor Eccl. (Rec. Com.), iv, 1 1 .
l"< Cal. S.P. Dam. 1636-7, p. 65.
1" Valor Eccl. (Rcc. Com.), iv, 1 1 ;
326
P.R.O. Inst. Bks. 1683, 1750, 1759.
1786.
l?6 Lipscomb, Hist, of Such, ii, 104.
177 Cf. Mandeville and Buckland.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
tioned in a privilege of Pope Alexander III.1™ The
monastery seems to have claimed the church of Weston
Turville and both the chapels of Lee and Broughton
at this time, but probably they never obtained any of
them except the chapel of Lee."* The chapel of
Broughton is again mentioned in 1535, amongst the
chapels appendant to the church of Bierton, belonging
to the Dean and Chapter of Lincoln."0 It was then
worth £20 a year.1" It was. however, not mentioned
in the grant of the church of Bierton, nor in the
ordination of the vicarage, so that it seems doubtful
whether it was ever separated from its mother church
of Weston Turv.lle.
There is a Baptist chapel, built in 1831, and a
Wesleyan chapel, built in 1877, both at Bierton.
Charity of William Hill, founded
CHARITIES by will, 1723, is endowed with
633. 3 r. 32 p. at Burcott in this
parish, let at £160 a year, to be applied, as to £16,
in providing eight coats, distribution of money to
poor not receiving relief and attending sacrament in
Wendover, Bierton, Buckland, Marsworth, Oving,
and Thornborough, the residue for education, ap-
prenticing, or other charitable purposes in Wendover
and Bierton. In 1907 £S was expended in coats to
the six parishes, £8 in sacrament money, annuity of
£6 to the vicars of Bierton and Wendover, £40 to
the Bierton Schools, £40 to the Wendover Schools,
and /,; in apprenticing.
The Feoffees Charity, mentioned in the Parlia-
mentary returns of 1786 a* founded by a donor un-
BUCKLAND
known, is endowed with 15 acres, let in allotments,
producing £36 a year, a house let at £4 a year, and
a rent-charge of £i 9/. issuing out of Dove House
Close, now belonging to Mr. Thomas Bell.
By an order of the Charity Commissioners of 21
April 1899, made under the Local Government Act,
1 894., the income was apportioned between the church
and the poor. In 1907, out of the net income, £10
was paid to the churchwardens, and £17 IO/. was
distributed in 46 doles at ~s. 6d. each, and one at ,/.
Charity of Samuel Bosse. — Under this title a further
annuity of £z is paid out of Dove House Close, which
is distributed in sixpences.
A Mr. Allen, at a date unknown, gave a sum of
£100 consols, the dividends to be distributed in best
bread on Christmas and Easter Day for ever. The
stock is held by the official trustees.
In 1862 Archdeacon T. Hill by deed gave £6 a
year for the distribution of Bibles and New Testaments
and for education of poor children in this parish and
in Wendover.
The charity of William Reeve, comprised in an
indenture, bearing date 12 October 18 Charles II, is
regulated by scheme of the Charity Commissioners of
21 August 1891. The trust estate consists of two
cottages and gardens let at £8 lot. a year, and
I a. 3 r. 32 p. of land in Broughton, let at /,8 a year,
and £6$ ji. \d. consols, with the official trustees,
producing yearly £l I2/. 4^. arising from accumula-
tions of income. In 1907 the sum of £14. was
expended in doles.
BUCKLAND
Buckland is a small parish lying on the Hertford-
shire border. It is remarkably long and narrow in
shape, and rises towards the south to the Chiltern
Hills. There are 534$ acres of arable land and 380^
acres laid down in permanent grass.1 The subsoil is
Upper Greensand and Gault,' and the surface soil red
and white clay. The land in the northern part of the
parish is between 300 ft. and 400 ft. above the
Ordnance datum * ; it rises considerably in the south,
the highest point being over 800 ft. near North Hill,
and the hamlet of Buckland Common is over 600 ft.
above the Ordnance datum.4 The parish is twice
crossed by the Grand Junction Canal, by the Aylesbury
Branch in the north and by the Wendover Branch in
the south ; there is a stream running through the
village and an old homestead moat near Moat Farm,
but the buildings which it surrounded have dis-
appeared. The chief road crossing Buckland parish
is Akeman Street, but the village lies along a branch
road, joining the main road at Buckland Wharf.
Another road branches from Akeman Street near the
same point and runs towards the south through Buck-
land Common to Cholesbury. The Lower and Upper
Icknield Ways also cross the parish, and the ancient
earthwork known as Grim's Dike can be traced. No
line of railway crosses the parish, and the nearest
stations are at Aylesbury, 4 miles away, and Tring,
5 miles away.
The village lies round the church and consists of
small farm houses, in one of which is some 1 7th-
century panelling, and cottages, some thatched.
Buckland House, the residence of the Rev. Edward
Bonus, a large house, lies to the south-west of the
church.
The population is mainly agricultural. The parish
was inclosed by Act of Parliament, the award bearing
the date 1 1 April 1 844.
The manor of BUCKLAND belonged
MJNOR before the Norman Conquest to the see
of Dorchester, which afterwards became
that of Lincoln. In the time of Edward the Con-
fessor* it was held by Godric, the brother of Bishop
Wulwig, but he could not assign or sell it without
the bishop's leave. Afterwards it was granted by
William I to Bishop Remigius* of Lincoln, the
Norman successor of Wulwig, and it belonged to the
temporalities of the see until the 1 6th century,7
when on the forfeiture of the lands of the Earl of
Warwick, the bishop's sub-tenant, the manor was
seized by the king.' From that time it was held in
chief of the king* by his grantee by knight service.
Bishop Remigius granted the manor of Buckland
to a sub-tenant named Walter, who held it at the
time of the Domesday Survey.10 To whom it passed
in the early part of the I2th century does not appear,
but later it was presumably in the hands of William
"• Harl. MS. 3688. '•• Ibid.
«• Vthr Eccl. (Rec. Com.), IT, 1 1.
"" Ibid.
1 Inf. from Bd. of Agric. (190;).
• r.C.H. Bufki. i, Geological Map.
• OrJ. Sur*. « Ibid.
• r.C.H. Btcki. i, 1340.
• Ibid.
7 Tata dt ffrvitl (Rec. Com.), 145* j
FnJ. Aidi, i, 85, 98, 123 ; Chin. Inq.
p.m. 4 Ric. II, no. 21; ibid. 9 Ric. II, no.
131.
327
• Chin. Inq. p.m. (Ser. i), ccclviii, no.
99 ; ibid, ccclviii, no. 102.
• IbiJ. Miic. D. nxvii, 21 Chat. I, pt.
32, no. 105.
>« y.C.H. Bub. i, 233*.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
de Bussey.11 He died about 1185, leaving two
daughters, Matilda the wife of Hugh Wake and
Cecilia the wife of John de Builly. Buckland was
divided between them, each holding the fee of one
knight."
Matilda's moiety passed to her daughter Joan, the
James Wake 13 who was the son and heir of her
husband being presumably the son of a second wife.
Joan first married Alan de Mumby, and secondly
Thomas de Gravenel.14 The latter obtained seisin
in 1 2 1 8 " of all the lands that his wife claimed by
right of inheritance from Matilda de Bussey her
mother.
Joan died about 1247, when her son and heir John
de Gravenel 16 did homage for lands that he held in
chief, and he probably obtained her moiety of Buck-
land at the same time from the Bishop of Lincoln.
He made an agreement with the holder of the other
moiety of Buckland in 1257," by which he granted
his moiety of the manor to Robert de Vipont and his
heirs for ever, while Robert then granted to him the
whole manor,18 presumably to hold for life only, since
it afterwards passed to the Viponts.
The moiety of Buckland which was held by
Cecilia and her husband John de Builly passed to
their only daughter and heiress Idonea, the wife of
Robert de Vipont. She appa-
rently died about 1 24 1 ,19 when
her lands were seized into the
king's hands, and her son and
heir John de Vipont ** died
very shortly afterwards. He
was succeeded by his son
Robert de Vipont, who was
a minor at the time.81 Robert
made the agreement with
John de Gravenel mentioned
before, and the whole manor
of Buckland finally descended
to his two daughters and heiresses, Isabel and
Idonea." Isabel married Roger de Clifford, who
died seised of a moiety of one messuage and a
garden, and 1 1 o acres of arable land and 2 acres of
pasture in Buckland.'3 For this land he paid ^os.
scutage, when it was levied, to the Bishop of Lincoln.
At the time of his death, however, the fees of knights
and free tenants and the advowsons of churches that
formed Isabel's inheritance had not been divided be-
tween her and her sister Idonea. Isabel held a
moiety of the township of Buckland in 1285," pre-
sumably half of the manor also, since Idonea's husband
Roger de Leyburn died seised about 1283" of the
other moiety. The manor does not appear, however, to
have been permanently divided, since Isabel's moiety
VlPONT. Or six rings
gules.
did not pass to her son and heir Robert de Clifford, but
Idonea, by some settlement of their inheritance,
obtained the whole manor. Her second husband,
John de Cromwell,26 paid the feudal dues from the
whole in 1302-3 and 1316. A few years later, how-
ever, they seem to have sold the reversion of the
manor " after their deaths to Hugh le Despenser. It
was seized by King Edward II in I326,'8 because
John de Cromwell stayed out of England without
licence, but being the inheritance of his wife, she
was allowed to receive the issues and profits'9 of the
manor, and also to retain her own ' robes, beds and
jewels and other things pertaining to her chamber.'
The king meanwhile seized John's horses, destriers,
armour, falcons, vessels and jewels for himself.3*
Idonea recovered the manor before her death, since
she was in seisin 31 at that
time, the reversion then be-
longing to Edward le De-
spenser, the second son of Hugh
le Despenser the younger. The
manor was afterwards settled
on Edward " and his wife
Anne, by fine with the over-
lord, the Bishop of Lincoln.
Edward died in I342,33 and
Anne held the manor in
1 346." She surrendered it
during her lifetime34 to her
son and heir Sir Edward le
Despenser, lord of Glamorgan.
He made various grants of the manor and rent
issuing from it, which led to a long lawsuit after
his death. In 1 37 2s6 he granted a pension of
20 marks a year for life to Nicholas Bernak his
esquire, and previously a rent to one Henry Ham-
wode.3' The manor itself he granted for life to his
brother Thomas le Despenser,58 who died seised in
I38o.39 It then passed to Thomas, Lord Despenserr
the son and heir of Sir Edward le Despenser, and he
granted Buckland in 1398'° to Thomas Percy, Earl
of Worcester, Hugh le Despenser, and other feoffees.
Probably this was a grant to the use of his daughter
and heiress Isabel," since she afterwards inherited the
manor. She married as her second husband Richard
Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick." The manor was granted
to John Mangan, or Nanston, esq., for life," and he
held it at the time of the countess's death in 1439.**
He also outlived her son and heir Henry Beauchamp,4*
Earl of Warwick, and the manor, when the reversion
fell in, presumably passed to Anne, the sister of the
earl and the wife of Richard Nevill,46 who was.
afterwards created Earl of Warwick, and became
famous as the ' Kingmaker.' After his defeat and
DISPENSER. Argent
quartered ivitk gules
fretty or and a bend sable
over all.
11 Rat. de Domtn. (ed. Grimaldi), 6.
13 Rot. Cur. Reg. (Rec. Com.), ii,
99-201 ; Rot. de Domin. 6. The wife of
William de Bussey was Roesia daughter
of Baldwin son of Gilbert, and Buckland
may have belonged to her inheritance ; cf.
Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 245*.
18 Excerfta e Rot. Fin. (Rec. Com.), i,
18, 21 ; Cal. of Inq. Htn. Ill, no. 858.
14 Excerfta e Rot. Fin. (Rec. Com.), i;
18, 21.
" Ibid. « Ibid, ii, 7.
V Feet of F. Div. Co. Mich. 42
Hen. III.
18 HunJ. R. (Rec. Com. ), i, 44.
19 Excerfta e Rot. Fin. (Rec. Com.), i,
357-
80 Ibid, i, 171, 389.
81 Ibid. ; De Banco R. 39, m. 67.
w Ibid.
28 Cal. of Inq. Edw. I, m. 478.
24 Feud. Aids, (,85.
24 Cal. of Inq. Ed-w. I, no. 525.
26 Feud. Aids, i, 98, 112.
V Feet of F. Div. Col. Mich. 14
Edw. II ; Chan. Inq. p.m. 6 Ric. II, no.
1 66.
28 Abbrev. Rot. Orig. (Rec. Com.), i,
299 ; Cal. Close, 1323-7, p. 603.
29 Ibid. •» Ibid.
81 Chan. Inq. p.m. 8 Edw. Ill (ist
nos.), no. 66.
82 Ibid. 16 Edw. Ill (lit nos.), no.
49"
328
88 Ibid. ; G.E.C. Complete Peerage.
84 Feud. Aids, i, 123.
85 Chan. Inq. p.m. 49 Edw. Ill (ist
nos.), pt. ii, no. 46, pt. 8;.
86 Cal. Pat. 1381-5, p. 181.
8" Chan. Inq. p.m. 6 Ric. II, no. 166 j
ibid. 9 Ric. II, no. 131.
" Ibid.
8« Ibid. 4 Ric. II, no. 21.
40 Cal. Pat. 1399-1401, p. 417.
41 G.E.C. Complete Peerage.
42 Chan. Inq. p.m. 18 Hen. VI, no. 3.
4S Ibid.
« Ibid.
45 Ibid. 24 Hen. VI, 00.43.
46 G.E.C. Complete Peerage.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
BUCKLAND
death at the Kittle of H.irnet in 1471, his lands
were seized by Edward IV, and were divided between
the earl's two sons-in-law, the Duke* of Clarence and
Gloucester, the brothers of the king." The Despenser
lands passed to Clarence, the claims of the Countess
of Warwick being entirely passed over. After the
accession of Henry VII, they were restored to her by
an Act of Parliament of 1487, but she immediately
rcgranted them to the Crown.4* In this grant the
manor of Buckland is named, and it remained in the
hand* of the Crown until the reign of Queen Mary."
Henry VIII, however, granted a lease of the demesne
lands and another tenement in the manor to Thomas
Green way in 1522** for twenty-one years, a second
lease for twenty-one years being drawn up in 1535"
to Thomas and his son Richard, when the same lands
were described as parcel of the lands of the late Earl
of Warwick. The manor of Buckland was granted
by Queen Mary" to Sir Anthony Browne, Lord
Montagu," whose daughter Elizabeth married Robert
Dormer, first Lord Dormer. It was given to the
latter in 1584," and his direct male descendants held
it until the death of Charles Dormer second Earl of
Carnarvon in 1 709," with perhaps a short interval
during the Civil War." Robert, the first Earl of
Carnarvon, was killed at the first battle of Newbury,"
fighting on the Royalist side, and possibly his lands were
confiscated. Charles, his son, seems to have made an
assignment of the m.mor in 1653," but possibly his
relationship to Philip Herbert Earl of Pembroke and
Montgomery,4* an influential Parliamentarian, and a
party in this assignment, enabled the Earl of Carnar-
von* to recover his lands. His daughter and co-
DODO
D D 0
DORMER.
lil'tti or tnd a chief or
with a Jtmi-lion table
therein.
STANMOTI. Quarterly
irminl tad gulil.
heiress Elizabeth married Philip Stanhope Earl of
Chesterfield," who held the manor in 1717." The
fifth Earl of Chesterfield held it in 1 8 1 3,° but after
his death, during the minority of his son and heir, it
was sold by the trustees under the direction of the
Court of Chancery*4 to George Hassall of Chole*-
bury. The latter died in 1821, and ' is said to hive
bequeathed, by will, his estates in this county to John
Atkinson, and others, solicitors, in London.' ** The
manor has since passed into the hands of Mr. Peter
Parott who is the present lord of the manor.
In I 308 ** John de Cromwell and his wife obtained
a grant of free warren for ever in all their demesne
lands of Buckland. This was also held by their suc-
cessors the Dcspensers ** and Robert Lord Dormer
obtained a new grant of free warren, and also of free
park in Buckland from James I."
The right to hold a view of frankpledge in the
manor of Buckland is not mentioned until the 14th
century. Idonea de Leyburn, the widow of John de
Cromwell, held a view twice a year at Michaelmas
and Hockday,** but presumably her ancestors had also
held it for their tenants in Buckland. The Despensers '*
held the view in the I 5th century, and in the grant
of the manor to Sir Anthony Browne, Lord Mon-
tagu," he obtained all the privileges that the pre-
vious lords of Buckland had exercised. The view
of frankpledge was alto held by the Dormers in the
1 7th century.™
No mill is mentioned in Buckland in Domesday
Book, nor in later surveys of the manor, and there is
no mill there at the present day.
The church of ALL SAINTS consists
CHURCH of a chancel 22ft. by 15 ft., a north
vestry, a nave 36 ft. 6 in. long and of a
mean width of 19 ft., a north aisle 8 ft. 6 in. wide,
and a western tower. The church has been so many
times restored as to have been practically rebuilt. The
north arcade of the nave is of mid-i 3th-century date,
and the chancel and west tower retain evidence
of work of the same period, but the architectural
history of the building is effectually obscured by the
modern work. The nave is irregular, being 1 4 in.
wider at the west th.in at the east, and the centre
line of the tower is a little to the north of that of the
nave.
The east window of the chancel is modern and of
three trefoiled lights with tracery of early 14th-century
style over, and in both the north and south walls of
the chancel is a modern window of two uncuspcd
lights with a quatrefoil over. West of the window
in the north wall is a 13th-century arch opening to
the vestry. In the south wall at the east is a 15th-
century piscina with a trefoiled head, and at the west
a single lancet very much restored but originally of
1 3th-century date. Between the two window* in
this wall is a small modern priest's door. The chan-
cel arch is of an obtuse two-centred form, and on the
east has one plain chamfer, while on the west it is of two
chamfered orders ; its date it doubtful, and perhaps
late. The jambs are square and on the west have a
square-edged string-course on the springing line,
which probably carried the back beam of the rood-
loft, and may belong to the time when the loit was
set up.
'-" Diet. Ntt. Bitf. »!, 196.
— Matiritli for Rtign of Htm. FII,
(Rolit Ser.), ii, 141.
«• L. tnd P. Hn. nit, i, 896 j iii, 779
('5).
•* Ibid, iii, 1x97 (it) ; Pat. 14 Hen.
VIII, ft. ii.
" L. tnJ P. Hn. fill, viii, 961 (9).
" Rot. Orif . i * a I'hil. and Marr,
pt. iii, R. 63.
* G.E.C. Camflftt Pttraft.
M Feet of F. Buckt. Eatt. 16 Eliz.
11 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccclviii, no.
99 ; ibid. no. 102 ; Feet of F. Div. Co.
2
Trin. 8 Chat. I ; RrcoT. R. Trin. 8
Chat. I ; Chan. Inq. p.m. Mite. (Ser. ii),
dxiimi, pt. 31, no. 105; C.E.C. Ccmfleti
tetrift.
M Pat. 34 Eliz. pt. IT, m. 21. Queen
Elizabeth (ranted the manor of Buckland
in 1 591 to William Tipper and Robert
Dawe, who were, however, only tithing
grinteet.
•' Diet. Ntt. Biof. IT.
M RI-CUT. R. Mil. 1653 i Feet ofF. Dir.
Co. Mich. 1653.
" G.E.C. Cimflrtt Ptertp.
" Ct Horienden.
329
11 G.E.C. Camflflt Peerigt.
" Recor. R. Eait. 3 Geo. II.
** I.ytont, Magna Brit, i, $30.
" I.i| tcomb, Hiit. ofBucki. ii, 1 17.
"Ibid.
** Chart R. 1 Edw. II, m. 14, no. JO.
••"Chan. Inq. p.m. 4 Ric. II, no. xi.
"Pat. 14 Jai. I, pt. 1 1, no. 12.
"Chan. Inq. p.m. 8 Edw. Ill (lit noO,
no. 66.
7»Ibid. 4 Ric. II.no. xi.
71 Rot. Ori(. pt. iii, I ft a PhiL and
Marjr.R.63.
J» Feet ot F. Dir. Co. Trin. 8 Chai. I.
4*
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
The nave is of three bays with a north arcade
having two-centred arches of two chamfered orders,
with an undercut label and round columns with
moulded bell capitals which have alternately octagonal
and circular abaci. In the east respond is the 15th-
century opening to the rood-loft, and over the arcade
are three modern clearstory windows, each of two
trefoiled lights. In the south wall are two windows,
that to the east is of two uncusped lights under a
pointed head, and though very much restored appears
originally to have been of early 14th-century date.
The other window is quite modern, and is of two
trefoiled lights with tracery of ^th-century detail.
The south door is of late 14th-century date, and has
been much repaired. The jambs and two-centred
head have a wide hollow between two double ogees,
enriched with four-leaved flowers, and on the old
stones are scratched many almost indecipherable
1 5th and 16th-century inscriptions. The whole of
this south wall has been rebuilt, and some pieces of
14th-century window tracery are set in the outer face
of the wall. Two heads set in the wall are tradition-
ally known as those of two robbers executed at Hang
Hill, 2 miles away.
The north aisle has also been rebuilt and has
in its north wall two modern two-light windows, and
between them a modern north door. To the east of
the aisle is a modern arch to the vestry, and at the
west a modern two-light window, a few old stones
being re-used in its splay.
The tower arch is two-centred, of two chamfered
orders dying into flat responds, and appears to be late
13th-century work. The tower itself is of three
stages with an embattled parapet, and has been com-
pletely rebuilt in recent years with the use of much
of its old material. There are modern single belfry
openings and a modern west window of one cinque-
foiled light.
The modern south porch is of wood upon a dwarf wall.
The font is circular, and though much restored is
of 13th-century date, with a fluted bowl and a band
of heavy foliage running round the rim.
The roof of the chancel is modern, but those of the
nave and aisle are of I 5th-century date. The seating
and rood screen are modern, but there is a late I jth-
century altar table in the north aisle. There are no
monuments of interest in the church.
The tower contains three bells : the treble by
Ellis and Henry Knight, 1675 ; the second by
Chandler, 1693 ; and the tenor by the same founder,
1708.
The only piece of silver plate is a small communion
cup, 8 in. high, of Elizabethan date.
The first book of the registers contains baptisms,
marriages, and burials between the years 1653 and
1753. The second book contains baptisms and burials
between 1762 and 1781 ; and the third marriages and
baptisms between 1783 and 1812, and burials
between 1784 and 1812.
The chapel of Buckland was origi-
ADrOWSQX nally dependent on the prebendal
church of Aylesbury, together with
the chapels of Bierton, Stoke Mandeville/3 and Quar-
rendon. It was separated with them from the mother
church in 1266," and the four chapels were given to
the Dean and Chapter of Lincoln. In 1294 the
vicarage of Bierton with the chapels of Stoke Mandeville,
Buckland, and Quarrendon was ordained," but in 1858
the chapels of Buckland and Stoke Mandeville ™ were
separated from Bierton and formed into separate bene-
fices. In 1281 77 the lords of Buckland Manor, Roger
de Clifford and his wife Isabel, and Roger de Leyburn
and his wife Idonea, claimed the advowson of the
church of Buckland from the Bishop of Lincoln and
the Dean and Chapter. They maintained that their
ancestress Idonea the wife of Robert de Vipont had
presented a certain Robert le Esquier in the time of
Henry III to the church and he had been admitted,
and so they claimed that the right to present to the
benefice had descended to them. The bishop and
dean answered that the church of Buckland was a
chapel appurtenant to the church of Aylesbury, which
William Rufus had given to the church of St. Mary of
Lincoln, with the chapel of Buckland. They pre-
sented his charter and its confirmation by Edward I.
The result of the suit is not given, but the Dean and
Chapter presumably gained it, since they were in
peaceful possession in 1294 at the time of the ordina-
tion of the vicarage. They are still the patrons of
the living at the present day.
There is a Wesleyan chapel at Buckland, built in
1831, and another at the hamlet of Buckland
Common, built in 1 860.
Charity of William Hill — see under
CHARITIES Bierton. The annual sum of £i
received from the trustees is given to
eight parishioners, and one overcoat is also given to
one old man each year.
"8 See Bierton and Stoke Mandeville.
?4 Cal. Pat. 1313-17, p. 304.
?5 Line. Epis. Reg. Bp. Button's In»t. ;
Rec. of Bucks, i, 233-5.
'' Sheahan, Hist, and Tofog. of Bucks, 1 09.
"' De Banco R. 39, m. 67.
33°
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
ELLESBOROUGH
ELLESBOROUGH
Ellesborough is an irregularly-shaped parish, lying
on the northern slope of the Chiltern Hills. It con-
tains nearly 3,595 acres.1 The highest point is
Combe Hill, which is 8 5 2 ft. high,' but in the northern
part of the parish the land lies between 300 ft.
and 400 ft. above the Ordnance datum. In the
hills the land is well-wooded, with 5 1 4} acres of
woods or plantations.* The park at Chequers Court
contains tome fine timber. The subsoil is chalk and
Upper Greensand, the surface variable — chalk and
flint in the uplands and loam in the low-lying district.
The occupation of the inhabitants is entirely agri-
cultural ; the proportion of arable land and permanent
pasture is nearly equal, with 1,158 acres of arable and
1,143 of grass.4 The main roads in the parish are
the Upper and Lower Icknield Ways. The latter
forms at this part of its course the main road from
Wycombe to Aylesbury, and passes through Terrick
End. The Upper Icknield Way wanders from the
main road, running from Little Kimble Church to
Wendover, through Ellesborough village »nd the ham-
let of Butler's Cross. The parish is well watered by
various streams running northwards ; one of these
turns the Ellesborough mill and another passes near
Chalkshire. There are springs to the north of
Ellesborough village, feeding a good-sized pond, used
for water-cress growing. Moats still exist at Grove
Farm, where there is an old dovecote, possibly of the
l6th century, Terrick House, at which there are re-
mains of I yth-century work much modernized, and
Nash Lee Farm ; there is a also reservoir near Beacon
Hill in the southern part of the parish. Between
Nash Lee and Terrick House the site of a Roman
villa has been discovered, and various British coins '
have been found in the parish. The nearest railway
station is at Little Kimble on the Aylesbury branch
of the Great Western Railway. Wendover station
on the Metropolitan Extension Railway is 2 miles
away. The parish was inclosed by an Act of Parlia-
ment* for the inclosure of the three parishes of Great
and Little Kimble and Ellesborough, the award being
dated 2 May 1805.
Before the Norman Conquest the
MANORS township of ELLESBOROUGH was
held in three parts, by Earl Harold,
Baldwin the man of Archbishop Stigand,' and Levenot
the man of King Edward.' The land held by Earl
Harold* was assessed at 13$ hides, and was called a
manor. At the Conquest it was given to Ralph
Talgebosch or Taillebois, but before the Domesday
Survey was made he had exchanged it with Ansculf de
Picquigny for half of Risborough at the king's com-
mand, and William Fitz Ansculf was the tenant in
I086.10 The latter also held the land of Baldwin,
but had enfeoffed Osbert as his sub-tenant." Ralph
Paganell became possessed of all the lands of Fitz
Ansculf," which formed the honour of Dudley or
Newport. He was succeeded by his son Gervase
Paganell," who paid feudal dues for lands in Buck-
inghamshire in 1190-1." Four years later, how-
ever, his honour '* was in the hands of the king,
but it afterwards passed to Ralph de Someri," the
son of John de Someri, who had married Hawisia
Paganell." The Someris held the honour until the
death of John de Someri in 1323," when his
possessions were divided between his two sisters Mar-
garet and Joan, and Ellesborough was assigned to the
latter," who was the widow of Thomas Botccourt.
The overlordship appears to have lapsed after the
honour was broken up, and in the 1 5th century this
part of Ellesborough was held in chief under the
honour or castle of Nottingham."
In 1086" Ralph held the manor of ELLES-
BOROUGH of William Fitz Ansculf, but its descent
in the following century is lost. At the close of the
1 2th century, however, it was in the hands of
Richard son of William, but he, during the civil wars
of the reign of John, granted it to William
Cauntlow." A dispute arose between his widow
Geva and William Cauntlow in 1224" about her
dower. An agreement had previously been made be-
tween them," but in spite of this she brought a claim
for a third part of the manor, which she obtained
by judgement of the king's court. William Caunt-
low died in 1239 * and was succeeded by an-
other William Cauntlow," who held the manor as
mesne lord till his death in 1251." He had been
the close friend of Henry III," but this friendship
was not extended to his son and heir William,"
whom the king treated with great harshness." He
did homage for his lands in the same year, 1251, but
only survived his father a short time. His early
death, which took place in 1254," was lamented by
the chronicler Matthew Paris,1' by whom he was
described as 'juvenis elegans et dives.' His heir was
his son George, who was either two or three years old
at the time of his father's death.** George died just
after reaching his majority," and Ellesborough passed
to Milicent, the elder" of his two sisters and co-
heiresses. She had married first Eudo la Zouche,**
and afterwards John de Montalt." Ellesborough
passed to her son William la Zouche,*8 and on his
1 OrJ. S*rv.
• Ibid.
• Inf. from Bd. of Agric. (1905).
• Ibid.
• y.C.H.Biukt. i, 192.
• Com. Intl. Avoardi. ' Eddleiborough '
it printed in the Blue Book bjr miitakc.
7 f.C.H. Buki. i, 1544.
• Ibid. 269*.
• Ibid. 2J4A
'« Ibid. » Ibid.
" Ibid. 21).
u Dugdale, Mm. Jtnfl. vii, lojS.
" ReJ Bk. of E*ch. (RolU Ser.), 71.
" Ibid. 90.
" Ibid. 109, 113.
W Dugdale, Moa.Angl. Tii, 1038 ; Ctl.
Inj. f.m. EJw. I, no. 813.
11 Chan. Inq. p.m. 16 Edw. II, no. 72.
'• Ctl. Clou, 1318-23, p. 630.
10 Chan. Inq. p.m. 19 Edw. IV, no. II;
Exch. Inq. p.m. bdle. 5, no. 3.
» y.CM. Buck, i, 254*.
" Aniie R. 54, ir. 5 d. ; Hund. R.
(Rec. Com.), i, 20.
» Feet of F. Buck*. 8 Hen. Ill, no. 6.
M Aiiite R. 54, m. 5 d.
u Matt. Paria, Ckron. Maj. (Rolli Ser.),
iii, 519.
• «.»,/. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
" Exccfta i Rot. Fin. (Rec. Com.), ii,
loo.
33'
» Matt. Paria, Ckr<m. Maj. (Rollt Ser.),
». "4-
» Ibid.
** Excerftt i Rot. Fin. (Rec. Com,), ii,
100.
•> Col. lnt. f.m. Hn. Ill, no. 3 1 8,
340.
" Matt. Paria, Ckrtn. Maj. (RolU Ser.),
T, 463.
••Ctl. Inj. f.m. Hin. Ill, no. 318,
340.
14 Ibid. £</w. /, no. 17.
•» Ibid.
*• Ctl. Clou, 1272-9, pp. 420, 533.
•' Ibid. 410 ; FruJ. Aidi, i, 86.
* Fine R. 27 Edw. I, m. 21.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
death in 1 3 5 2 " he was succeeded by his grandson
William la Zouche of Harringworth,40 who afterwards
gave the manor of Ellesborough to his second son
Thomas to hold in demesne for life." The latter died
If
)OO
bo
>o J
vc
CAUNTLOW. Gules
three feurs-de-lis coming
out of leopards' heads re-
versed or.
ZOUCHE. Gules bt-
taanfy and a quarter er-
mine.
seised in 1404, and the manor reverted to his nephew
William la Zouche," the son of his elder brother
William. The reversion, however, had already been
granted by William la Zouche to Henry, Bishop of
Lincoln, and other feoffees in 1402," and William la
Zouche made a further release of his right in the
manor of Ellesborough to John Toly and William
Glen, clerks," two of the original feoffees. At his death,
however, in 1416, he was said to have enfeoffed Sir
William de Roos of Hamelake 45 and others, probably
another set of trustees, of the manor; but only Thomas,
Lord Berkeley, Thomas le Warr, and Robert Isham
survived at that date.'" William la Zouche left a
son William, in whose interest the feoffments had
probably been made. In 1430" the manor appears
to have been held by Thomas Bronus, clerk, Roger
Heron, clerk, Robert Chatheley, John Barton the
younger, and Thomas Compworth, but they then
conveyed it to John Cotesmore, John Cheyne, and
others." Henry Chicheley, Archbishop of Canter-
bury,4' also released his right in the manor to the new
feoffees. These numerous enfeoffments seem to cover
a transfer of the manor between 1416 and 1430 from
the Zouche family to John Cheyne, who held it in
I432.60 Shortly afterwards, however, Cheyne enfeoffed
Thomas Frowyk," Henry Frowyk, and William
Walton," who held the court of the manor in 1442."
Cheyne and his feoffees next released the manor to
John Hampden of Kimble4' and Edward Brudenell
on condition that they enfeoffed John Brekenok " on
his payment of a sum of money to Cheyne. Breke-
nok failed to pay at the appointed date,56 and Cheyne
tried to recover the manor from Hampden and
Brudenell, who refused to relinquish it.*7 Brekenok
probably paid after a time and held the manor till
1458, when he and his wife quitclaimed it to John
Heton, Edward Brudenell and others for £200."
Who was in actual seisin at this time is very doubt-
ful, but the manor shortly afterwards must have
passed to the Poles, since in 1479 Geoffrey Pole died
seised.69 His son Richard, who married Margaret
daughter of the Duke of Clarence, inherited it.™
Their son Henry Pole, Lord Montagu, a minor at
his father's death,61 had livery of his lands in 1513,"
but afterwards was attainted and executed, and his
possessions reverted to the Crown in 15 39-40."
Henry VIII sold the manor of Ellesborough to Sir
John Baldwin, Lord Chief Justice of Common Pleas,"
for £623 iSj. 5^." From him it descended to one
of his two grandsons and heirs, Thomas Pakington,
the son of Ann Baldwin and Robert Pakington.66 It
was held by the Pakingtons, his descendants,67 until
it was bought in 1770 by Sir John Russell, who held
the manor of Chequers in Ellesborough.68 The
Pakingtons claimed the paramount lordship in Elles-
borough in the 1 8th century,69 but this claim was
abandoned when a farm in the parish was bought of
the Pakingtons by the Russell family. The manor of
PAKINGTON. Party
cheveronivise table and
argent 'with three pierced
molets or in the chief and
three sheaves gules in the
foot.
R-JSSZU.. Urgent a
lion gules and a thief
sable with three roses ar-
gent therein.
Ellesborough is now held by the trustees of Mr. Frank-
land-Russell-Astley, who has inherited the estates of
the Russells.70
In the 1 3th century the manor of Ellesborough was
held for a tim- by a younger branch of the Caunt-
lows. The first William Cauntlow or his son and
heir, William, apparently subinfeudated Nicholas the
second son,71 who was seised in 1254." William,
the son of Nicholas, succeeded him, but granted
the manor to his mother Eustachia and William
de Ros her second husband for life.73 He, how-
ever, was re-enfeoffed jointly with his wife Eva
for their lives by Eustachia and her husband,7*
and held the manor at his death in I3o8.75 It
then reverted to his mother and William de Ros
for life. William Cauntlow's heir 76 .was his son
another William, but the latter died childless, so
** Col. Close, 1349-54, p. 416 ; Chan.
Inq. p.m. 26 Edw. Ill (ist nos.), no. 51.
« Ibid.
41 Chan. Inq. p.m. 6 Hen. IV, no. 17.
« Ibid.
« Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 4 Hen. IV.
<4 Cal. of Anct. D., B. 1453.
<6 Chan. Inq. p.m. 3 Hen. V, no. 46.
<• Ibid.
*' Cal. af Anct. D., B. 1458.
« Ibid.
« Close, 8 Hen. VI, m. 7.
K Cal. of Anct. D., B. 1456.
41 Ibid. " Ibid. 1457.
*• P.R.O. Ct. R. pt. 1 5 5, no. 1 1.
" Cal. of Anct. D., B. 1452.
u Early Chan. Proc. bdle. 17, no. 151.
«« Ibid. »7 Ibid.
•• Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 37 Hen. VI.
" Chan. Inq. p.m. 19 Edw. IV, no. II.
60 G.E.C. Complete Peerage.
61 Exch. Inq. p.m. bdle. 5, no. 3.
« L. and P. Hen. Vlll, i, 4325.
•8 Exch. Inq. p.m. bdle. 33, no. 7 ; L,
and P. Hen. Vlll, xiv (i), 1354 (45).
" Pat. 36 Hen. VIII.pt ix.
•» L.and P. Hen. r///,xix(z), 166(37).
•* Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), Ixxiii, no.
7; Visit, of Bucks. 1566 (ed. Metcalfe).
87 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), clvi, no.
I ; Feet of F. Bu.ks. Mich. 5 Jas. I;
Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccccxviii, no.
332
69 ; Feet of F. Bucks. East. 4 Will, and
Mary; Trin. 7 Geo. I; Mich. 13
Geo. Ill ; G.E.C. Complete Baronetage.
68 Lysons, Magna Brit, i, 555.
•• Ibid. 10 Cf. manor of Chequers.
71 Close, 1 5 Ric. II, m. 23 ; Hund. R.
(Rec. Com.), i, 20.
'a Cal. Inq. p.m. Edia. I, ii, 504.
7» Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 44 ; Ex-
cerpta e Rot. Fin. (Rec. Com.), ii, 349 j
Feet of F. Div. Co. Mich. 29 & 30
Edw. I.
'4 Cal. Close, 1307-13, p. 80; Feud.
Aids, i, 98 ; Cal. Pat. 1301-7, p. 468.
'* Chan. Inq. p.m. 2 Edw. II, no. 51.
~> Ibid.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
ELLESBOROUGH
that Nicholas his brother obtained the manor on its
reversion to the Cauntlows.7' Nicholas settled the
manor of Ellcsborough on his wife Joan for life,"
with remainder to Nicholas his grandson and son of
William Cauntlow and the heirs of his body." If
these failed the further remainder was granted to
William brother of Nicholas with the same restric-
tions.10 Nicholas the grandson died without heirs of
his body," and William obtained seisin of the manor."
He died in 1376, his father William Cauntlow
being his heir." The latter seems to have had no
other children besides the two sons who had pre-
deceased him, so that on his death the manor reverted
to the Zouches, as the representatives of the elder
branch of the Cauntlow family."
William Cauntlow held the view of frankpledge
for his moiety of the parish of Ellcsborough,'5 but in
l 254 the origin of his right to do so was unknown."
Probably, however, Richard son of William who had
granted his father the manor of Ellesborough had also
held the view, and Cauntlow continued to do so
without any definite grant. The view was probably held
by the Zouches, and in the ijth century the feoffees
of Sir John Cheyne held it," the right afterwards
coming to the Pakingtons in the lyth century.™ In
the reign of James I" Edward Brudenell obtained a
grant of a court leet and view of all his tenants in
Stoke Mandeville, Ellesborough, and Little Kimble, to
be held twice a year, but probably the Ellesborough
tenants belonged to his manor of Stoke Mandeville.
APPESLET aliaj APSLEY is first mentioned in a
charter of Roger de Hampton, granting 5/. rent to
the abbey of Missenden, which William de la Merse
paid him for land in ' Aspeleia.' N It presumably
belonged to the honour of Dudley, since in 1486-7
it was held of Geoffrey Pole, who then held the
manor of Ellesborough."
In 1 247 " William de Appesley brought an action
against the Abbot of Missenden concerning a free
tenement and rent in Ellesborough.
Another William de Appesley was plaintiff in a fine
for lands and rents in Ellcsborough in I 316," but the
manor of Appesley is not definitely mentioned until
1486—7, on the death of Thomas Temple." His
heir was his son William, a minor. During the reign
of Henry VIII Francis Temple obtained possession of
the manor probably in succession to William. He was
seised in 1537,** and made various settlements for the
use of himself and his wife Elizabeth and the heirs of
their bodies. After his death ** Elizabeth brought
several actions against lessees of the manor and lands
to recover possession." It seems to have passed to
one John Temple by 1575," and from him to
Thomas Temple before 1584-5," since in that year
Thomas, together with his wife Cecily, sold Appesley
Manor to William Sheppard of Great Rollright, co.
Ozon.1M It passed on his death in 1625 '" to his son
William, whose descendants held the estate "* until
1733,'* when William Sheppard sold it to William
Ledwell. His son William Bridges Ledwell again
sold the manor of Appesley in 1792 lw to Sir Scrope
Bernard, afterwards Sir Scrope Bernard Morland, bart.
At the beginning of the 1 9th century it had again
been sold to James Humphreys,1" but it 1844 it wat
obtained by Mr. Edward W. Blanchard. In 1894
Lieut. -Colonel Horwood of Walton Warren, Ayles-
bury, purchased Appesley Manor Farm, and is the
owner at the present day.'**
The reputed manor of MORDAUNTS in the parish
of Ellesborough was held as a sub-manor under the
Cauntlows, and so belonged to the honour of Dudley.
In 1274-5 Lawrence de Brok died seised of 6 marks
rent, which he held of Nicholas Cauntlow."7 His
son and heir was Hugh de
Brok,"" who held the same
rent in 1284-6."" Hugh
died before 1 300, when his
widow Isabel granted away
certain lands and rents in
Ellesborough for the term of
her life.110 Another Law-
rence de Brok, her son, held
tenements in Ellesborough,1"
the rents and services from
which he granted to John de
Bykton for fourteen years,
and in 1 309 made a settle-
ment of loot, rent in Ellesborough on himself
and his wife Ellen.'" His lands descended to his
granddaughter Helen,111 who married Edmund Mor-
daunt.1" The latter died seised of rents in Elles-
borough in 1374,"* which were held of William
Cauntlow ; he was succeeded by his heir Robert,
then a minor. The Mordaunts presumably held
this rent in Ellesborough uninterruptedly during
the 15th century, and in 1504 or 1505 Sir John
Mordaunt held land in Ellesborough.1" He was
raised to the peerage as Baron Mordaunt of Turvey,
and was succeeded by his son and grandson in turn.1"
In 1560 "* their possessions in Ellcsborough were de-
scribed as the manor of Ellesborough, and this name
was again used when Lewis the third Lord Mordaunt
B>OK. Gulet * ckirf
argent tvitk a lion fattant
gulei therein.
71 Akbrrv. Ktt. Orig. (Rec. Com.), ii,
336 ; Chin. Inq. p.m. 16 Edw. II, no. 71.
""Chan. Inq. p.m. 45 Edw. HI (nt
not.), no. 13.
"» Cloit, it, Ric. II, m. 13; Chin.
Inq. p.m. 49 Edw. II (itt noi.), no. 28 ;
Aiilze R. 14^8, m. 17 d.
•"Chan. Inq. p.m. 4; Edw. Ill (lit
not.), no. 13 ; 49 Edw. Ill (lit not.), no.
aS.
"' Ibid.
•> fad. AiJt, i, U}.
M Chin. Inq. p.m. 49 Edw. Ill (lit
not.), no. 18.
« Ibid.
" Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 10.
" Ibid.
1 P.R.O. Ct. R. portf. i c;, no. 1 1.
« Feet of F. Bucki. Mich. 5 Jat. I.
* Pit. 14 Jit. I, pt. 17.
« Hart. MS. 3688.
" Cal. Inj. Hi*, yil, no. 306.
" Aiiize R. $6, m. 20.
" Feet of F. Bucki. Trin. IO Edw. II.
* Cal. Inq. Hen. yil, no. 306.
N Chin. Proc. (Ser. z), bdle. 1 76, no.
77-
"Ibid. bdle. 60, no. la.
" Ibid. 39, 29.
• RCCOT. R. Mil. 18 Eliz. ; Feet of F.
Bucki. Mil. 1 8 Eliz.
*• Ibid. Mich. 21 Elii. j Eait. 21 Eliz.;
Recor. R. Hil. 21 Eliz.
100 Feet of F. Bucki. Hil. 27 Eliz.
101 Chin. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccccxix, no.
46 ; ibid, ccccil, no. 67.
X* Feet of V. Bucki. Ea.t. 8 Chai. I ;
Recor. R. Hil. 7 Anne.
"» Ibid. Mich. 7 Ceo. II | Feet of F.
Bucki. Mich. 7 Ceo. II.
333
'"' Ibid. Hil. 32 Geo. Ill ; Recor. R.
Ent. 3 2 Geo. III.
104 l.yioni, Magna Brit, i, 555.
106 From informition kindlr given by
Meiin. Horwood ind Jimci of Aylei-
burr.
'»•" Cal. Inq. f.m. EJvi. I, no. I IO.
«• Ibid.
w» FeuJ, Aidi, i, 86.
"» HarL Chirt. 46, F. Ji.
»> Ibid. 46, G. 5.
l" Feet of F. Bucki. Trin. 3 Edw. II.
"» Hart. PuU. Sue. six, 41 i riiii.tf
Bulti. 1(66 (ed. Metcalfe).
114 Ibid.
"• Chin. Inq. p.m. 47 Edw. Ill (lit
not.), no. 27.
114 Eich. Inq. p.m. v, no. 2.
W G.E.C. Complete Peerage.
»» Recor. R. Mich. 2 & 3 Eliz.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
XA\
MORDAUNT. Argent
a cheveron between three
start table.
sold it to William Hawtrey in 1571.'" It afterwards
became known as the manor of Mordaunts, and from
the time that it passed to the
Hawtreys was held with the
manor of Chequers (q.v ).120
The first Laurence de Brok
held his rent from Nicholas
Cauntlow by the service of a
clove gillyflower paid annual-
ly,121 but in 1374 Edward
Mordaunt held it by military
service.1"
William Fitz Ansculf sub-
infeudated the l$ hides of
land in Ellesborough that
Baldwin had held before the
Norman Conquest.183 They were held at the time
of the Domesday Survey by Osbert, who also held
the manor of Great Hampden.124 This land prob-
ably came into the possession of the Hampdens,125
the successors and possibly the descendants of Osbert.
In 1 200 126 — de Hinton paid I mark to the king for a
judgement as to half a knight's fee in ' Esseburg,' which
was apparently given in his favour against Michael
Malherbe and his wife Mabel. Twenty-one years 127
afterwards Robert de Pinkeny paid I mark for a similar
suit as to II virgates of land against Roger de Hamp-
ton and his wife Mabel. Roger held land in Elles-
borough in 1240-1,"' but he had died before 1247,
in which year his widow claimed land there as her
right.129 Whether this Roger was any relation to the
main branch of the Hampden family does not ap-
pear. He had granted certain land to the first
William Cauntlow in I228,130and it seems possible
that all the land belonging to the honour of Dudley
became united under the Cauntlows.
The third part of the township was given after the
Conquest to Maigno the Breton,131 and was held by
his descendants as half a knight's fee belonging to their
barony of Wolverton. It passed to his descendant
Hamo son of Meinfelin who, in 1 1 66, owed the ser-
vice of fifteen knights to the king.132 Hamo was
succeeded by his son, known as Hamo son of Hamo,133
and the latter confirmed a grant of land in Elles-
borough made to Missenden Abbey.134 On his death
his son William obtained his possessions,136 but taking
part with the barons against King John he forfeited
them for a time.136 He made his peace in 1216,
paying a fine to the king,1" and held the barony of
Wolverton till his death c. I248.138 In that year
his brother and heir Alan son of Hamo did homage
to the king for his lands,139 but in the same year the
new lord of Wolverton died and was succeeded by his
son John son of Alan.140 John was the overlord of
WOLVKRTON. Azure
an eagle or with a bend
gules over all.
this part of Ellesborough in I254,141 and presumably
held it till his death in 1271-2. 142 It was amongst
the knights' fees assigned on dower to his widow Isa-
bella, who married as her second husband Ralph de
Ardena.143 John son of Alan's heir at the time of his
death 144 was his son Richard a boy five years old, but
he seems to have died before he came of age and the
barony of Wolverton passed to his brother John.1 5
The family at this time appear to have taken the sur-
name of Wolverton.146 This John was a knight in
1318"' and died before 1342."" He was succeeded
by his son John de Wolverton "9 and grandson Ralph de
Wolverton.150 The latter, however, died while still a
minor, and the barony was
divided between his two sis-
ters Margaret and Elizabeth.151
The former was betrothed at
the time of her brother's
death to John le Hunte, and
the overlordship of Elles-
borough was assigned to her.1''2
Her daughter and heiress Jo.in
succeeded her and married
John Longville.15" He held her
inheritance by courtesy after
her death for his life,154 and
then it passed to her son and
heir George Longville.15* His descendants held her
moiety of the honour of Wolverton until the 1 7th
century, and in 1636 Sir Henry Longville held the
overlordship of half a knight's fee in Ellesborough
among his other possessions belonging to the manor
of Wolverton.158
In 1254 John son of Alan paid 3/. a year to be
quit of suit to the shire and hundred courts and ^s.
for the right to hold the view of frankpledge for his
tenants at Ellesborough.157 No further mention of
this view is made, but probably the lords of the
barony of Wolverton held a view for all the tenants
of their barony.
The land held under the honour of Wolverton
was probably subinfeudated before 1 1 66 and one
moiety of it was afterwards known as SEfTON'S
M4NOR or the MJNOR OF GROPE. William
Brito held certain land in Ellesborough 15S shortly
after that date, and may perhaps be identified with
William son of Alan who was then one of the knights
of Hamo son of Meinfelin.159 William Brito granted
land to Missenden Abbey in the time of Hamo son
of Hamo.160 He seems to have been succeeded by
Alan Brito, possibly his son, who died during the
reign of Richard I.161 A lawsuit was held as to his
lands in Ellesborough between his nephew Simon de
Maidwell, apparently his heir, and William de Med-
119 Com. Pleas D. Enr. Bucks. Trin.
13 Eliz.; Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. 13 Eliz.
120 Ibid. East. 16 Chas. I.
121 Cal. Inq.p.m.Edvi.l, no. no.
122 Chan. Inq. p.m. 47 Edw. Ill (i»t
nos.), no. 27.
i*8 V.C.H. Buekt. i, 2544.
l" Ibid.
125 Cf. Great Hampden.
126 Pipe R.2 John, m. i8d.
"7 Ibid. 5 Hen. Ill, m. 1 3d.
"" Feet of F. Bucks. Hil. 25 Hen. III.
129 Assize R. 56 n.
i"° Feet of F. Bucks. 12 Hen. Ill, no.
24.
"1 y.C.H. Bucks. 1,269*.
18» Red Bk. ofExch. (Rolls Ser.), 3 14.
188 Dugdale, Mon. iv, 350.
134 Harl. 3688.
185 Dugdale, Man. iv, 350.
186 Rot. de Oblat. et Fin. (Rec. Com.),
568.
i"7 Ibid.
l88 Excerpta e Rot. Fin. (Rec. Com.), ii,
1S9 jbid.
. 42j 59.
l« Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
143 Cal. Intj. p.m. Hen. Ill, no. 8 1 2.
148 Cal. Close, 1272-9, p. 351.
144 Cal. Inq. p.m. Hen. Ill, no. 8 1 2.
I*5 Dugdale, Mon. iv, 350.
1« Cal. dote, 1288-96, p. 36.
334
"7 Ibid. 1318-23, p. 94.
"8 Chan. Inq. p.m. 15 Edw. Ill (ist
nos.), no. 25.
149 Ibid. 23 Edw. (pt. i), no. 35.
l*0 Ibid. 25 Edw. Ill (ist nos.), no. 6.
151 ibid. " 15S Ibid.
""Ibid. 17 Hen. VI, no. 38.
1" Ibid.
1" Ibid.
l56 Ibid. (Ser. 2), ccccxxx, no. 131.
"7 Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
»8 Harl. MS. 3688.
«• Red Bk. ofExch. (Rolls Ser.), 314.
"0 Harl. MS. 3688.
"l Rolls of the Kings Ct. (Pipe Roll
Soc.), xiv, 125.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
mcnham, who called to warranty his wife Matilda,
who in her turn called to warranty Henry de Pin-
keny ; the last-named had, it was alleged, given the
land to Matilda's father. The result of the suit is
not given, but Simon de Maidwell was one of the
parties to various fines concerning land in Elles-
borough at the time, the last being in izoz.10 He
also obtained a grant of free warren in his lands there
from Henry III.10 He was succeeded by Alan de
Maidwell, probably his son,1*1 who was defendant in
a suit as to land in Ellesborough, and about th.it time
held a quarter of a knight's fee of the barony of
Wolverton. lu He is mentioned for the last time in
1241.'"* Possibly he left a son Simon, since in 1261
or 1262 Alice daughter of Simon de Maidwell re-
covered various charters of lands in Ellesborough,
which had been kept by the executor of her father's
will.1*7 She was a minor in
the wardship of Richard de
Seyton of Maidwell, North-
amptonshire."* He married
his ward, and her land, which
she held as the heiress of
William Brito, passed to the
Seyton family.16* She died
before 1284-6 and was suc-
ceeded by her son John de
Seyton.170 He was at that
time a minor, and his land was
in the ward^ip of Anthony
de Bek."1 He was holding
it himself in I3O2,17> but had been succeeded
before 1312 by Nicholas de Seyton.171 Nicholas
died in or just before 1316,"' and his manor passed
to his son John de Seyton, who held it till his
death.17' His son and heir John de Seyton did
homage for his manors to his overlord in 1361— z. "'
John made two grants of the manor of Grove to
feoffees, who were presumably trustees for his lands
while he went to the Holy Land.1'7 He died at
Jerusalem in 1 396 I7> and was succeeded by his son
and heir John. The latter held the manor till his
death, which took place about 1436-7. His son
Thomas de Seyton assigned it at that date in dower to
his father's widow Joan,1" but in 1446 he granted the
Sr.vTos. Gales a
bend bttvjeen six martlets
argent.
ELLESBOROUGH
manor of Grove to John Kempe, Cardinal and Arch-
bishop of York, John Stopyngton, Thomas Kempe,
and others.180 These grantees in 1459'" conveyed
the manor to Sir Ralph Verney and Robert Whit-
tyngham and others, to the use of Ralph Verney his
heirs and assigns. The Verneys held the manor for
about a hundred years,'" John Verney being seised
of the manor in 1530,'° and Edmund Verney in
'553-'M I* changed hands shortly afterwards and
passed to Robert Hewster of Chalford, Oxfordshire,
who in 1564 conveyed it to Nicholas Eggleton. In
1579 the latter complained that his son and heir Wil-
liam had entered into the manor and detained certain
deeds concerning it, but by 1596 Nicholas had re-
covered seisin.18* In 1631"* Christopher Eggleton
was lord of the manor, and in that year settled it on
his son Christopher on the marriage of the latter
with Margaret daughter of Thomas Style.1" They
were in seisin in 1654,"* and were succeeded by
Thomas Eggleton, whose daughter and heiress Amy
married Sir Lyon Pilkington, bart.'* The latter
was seised together with his wife in 1 694,"° but they
shortly afterwards, or possibly at that date, sold the
manor of Grove. Presumably it passed into the
hands of Alexander Horton ' of the Grove ' who died
in 1715-16.'" William Horton shortly afterwards
held the manor,1" but in 1735 he sold it to John
Bristowe.'" Richard Bristowe held it in 1768, but
he or his heir sold it in 1798 to Sir John Russell, and
from that time it has followed the descent of the
manor of Chequers (q.v.).1*4
The manor of CHEQUERS belonged to the half-
fee in Ellesborough held under the barony of Wolver-
ton, but it is difficult to ascertain whether it was held
immediately from the lords of Wolverton or from the
de Maidwells and Seytons as mesne lords.1*6 The
name of Chequers was probably derived from the
name of the first tenants. Helyas de Scaccario,
or of the Exchequer, appears amongst the witnesses to
two charters,"4 one of which is dated 1187, to the
abbey of Missenden. Henry de Scaccario was the
plaintiff in several lawsuits in the beginning of the
1 3th century,197 and held a quarter of a knight's fee
in Ellesborough of the barony of Wolverton."*
Henry de Scaccario had a son Ralph, whose
"• Feet of F. Buckt. 10 Ric. I, no. 60 5
ibid. 4 John, no. zo.
1M Abbrrv. flac. (Rec. Com.), 242.
'*• Auize R. 54, m. i 3.
>•» Titta de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 248 ;
Cat. Cine, 1271-9, p. 351 ; FiuJ. Aids,
i, 86, 98, I2J. It it difficult to ascertain
if the Miidwelli held the whole half fee
in EUefborough belonging to the barony of
Wolverton >nd had tubinfeudated a tenant
with i quarter fee or if they only held a
quarter of a fee, while the other quarter
wai held direct from the lordi of Wolver-
ton. The Maidwelli and their luccedort
the Seytoni were fometimci Hid to hold
a half fee and tometimei the quarter. It
Kemi pouible that they only held the
latter, but that they were responsible for
the payment of the feudal duel and icr-
vice from the whole half fee ; Ttiu Je
Nevill (Rec. Com.), 248 ; Chan. Inq. p.m.
23 Edw. Ill (pt. i),no. 35 i ibid. 25 Edw.
Ill (lit noi.), no. 6 ; ibid. 17 Hen. VI,
no. 38.
1M Anue R. 55, m. ].
"' Ibid. 57, m. iz ; ibid. ;g, m. lod.,
14 d.
u Ibid. 57, m. 12.
»• Re* Bk. of Excb. (Rolli Ser.), 728 ;
Cat. Cine, 1272-9, p. 351 j De Banco R.
15, m. 16.
i"> V,ud. Aids, i, 86.
»H Ibid.
>7« Ibid. 98.
CT Feet of F. Bucki, Bait, 5 Edw. III.
V Ftud. Aids, iv, 24, 209 ; i, 1 1 X.
"• Feet of F. Div. Co. Trin. 1 1 Edw.
Ill; B.M. Add. Chart. 21164; *<«<*>
Aids, i, 113.
>;' Add. Chart. 21181.
'" Ibid. 22213-15, 19912.
W1 Yiut. tf Montana. 1564 (ed. Met-
calfe).
'" Add. Chart. 20303-4-5.
*"° Feet of F. Bucki. Eait. 24 Hen.
Ill ; Add. Chart. B.M. no. 7383.
"" Eich. Inq. p.m. bdle. 25, no. 12.
182 See manor of Stonori Croft in Bier-
ton.
"» Recov. R. Trin. 21 Hen. VIII.
*" Feet of F. Bucki. Trin. i Mary.
»» Ibid. Mich. 38 & 39 Elii.
"• Recov. R. Trin. 7 Chai. I. In the
1 5th, i6th, and 171(1 crnturiet there it
•ome confuiion ai to the overlordihip of
the manor of Grove. Sir Ralph Verney
335
wai laid to hold it of the Abbot of Miwen-
den (Exch. Inq. p.m. bdle. 2;, no. 12),
and in 1637 Christopher Eggleton (ten.)
held it of John Fleetwood, ai of the late
monastery of Minenden ; Chan. Inq. p.m.
Miic. dxxzviii, 13 Chas. I, pt. 33, no.
95. The monaitery, however, never
•eemi to have had any right in the manor,
and at the time of the Dissolution in only
posiesiinn in Elleiborough wai a rent of
8). ; /'a/or Eccl. (Rec. Com.), iv, 246.
'"' Chan. Inq. p.m. Mile, dijuviii, 1 3
Ch«. I, pt 33, no. 95.
•«" Feet of F. Bucki. Mich. 1654.
189 G.E.C. Comfleu Baronetagt, ii.
>» Feet of F. Div. Co. Trin. 5 Will,
and Mary.
m Monument in Elleiborough Church.
>M Recor. R. Mich. 9 Ceo. II.
>« Ibid.
"" Lyioni, Magma Brit, i, 555 ; Shea-
ban, Hiit. and Tofog. if Bucks, 121.
I— Cf. Manor of Grore, n. 165.
>•» Harl. MS. 3688.
117 Feet of F. Bucki. John, caie 14,
file 4 { ibid, i Hen. Ill, no. i ; 9 Hen.
Ill, no. zi ; 20 Hen. VII, no. viii.
»» Testa Je Nevill (Rec. Com.), 148.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
DE SCACCARIO. Cheeky
argent and azure.
daughter and co-heiress Catherine married William
Hawtrey.199 In 1286 lands in Ellesborough were
conveyed by William Hawtrey, jun., to William
Hawtrey, sen., and Katharine his wife.m In 1383
William Hawtrey, and in 1422
Richard Hawtrey, both appear
in charters referring to the
manor of Grove."1 In 1350**
and 1439 tos the heir of Henry
de Scaccario held a quarter of
a knight's fee of the barony
of Wolverton, and as late as
1544 Thomas Hawtrey died
seised of the manor of Che-
quers, with land and tene-
ments in Ellesborough.'04 His
heir was William his grand-
son,105 son of Thomas Hawtrey and Sibilla daughter
and co-heiress of Richard Hampden of Kimble.*06
The son of William Hawtrey died leaving four
daughters, of whom the eldest, Mary, married Sir
Francis Wolley.*" She probably inherited the manor
of Chequers, since a settlement of the manor was
made in 1594s08 by William Hawtrey and Sir
John Wolley. Mary died without children,*09 and
the manor passed to her next sister Bridget, the
wife of Sir Henry Croke.*10 His son Sir Robert
Croke was certified as a delinquent during the
Commonwealth, but he was said to have had no
real property in Ellesborough."1 In 1660, however,
he was seised of the manor of Chequers,"8 and on his
death in 1680 the manor passed to his daughters.
Susan, the eldest, had married Samuel Wall, M.D.,'15
but neither she nor the third sister Isabella had chil-
dren, and Mary the second sister obtained the whole
estate of Chequers."4 She married John Thurban,
serjeant-at-law, and the manor descended to their
daughter Johanna,215 who married first Colonel John
Rivett. Her three sons, of whom the eldest, John
Rivett, was a party to a common recovery in I759,216
all died leaving no children, and the manor passed to
their sister Mary Johanna, the wife of Colonel Charles
Russell."' Their son Sir John Russell, bart., was seised
of the manor in I765.'18 He died in 1783,"' and
was succeeded by his two sons John and George in
turn, but both died without direct heirs. On the
death in 1 804 of Sir George Russell, who had enlarged
the estates of his family in the parish of Ellesborough
by various purchases,™ Chequers passed under the
will of his father to his aunt, Mary Russell, with
remainder to the Rev. John Russell Greenhill. m The
latter was a descendant of Elizabeth, the sister of
Colonel Charles Russell.8™ The estate, however, was
given up by them to Robert Greenhill, the son of
John Russell Greenhill, who held it in 1813.'" He
took the name of Russell in addition to Greenhill,
and was created a baronet in 1831.*" On his death
in 1837 Chequers passed to Sir Robert Frankland,
bart.,"5 a distant kinsman of the Russells. He assumed
the name of Russell, by sign manual, and on his death
in 1849 left five daughters as his heiresses.'" Chequers
came to the youngest, Rosalind, the wife of Colonel
Astley,*17 and she took the additional names of Frank-
land-Russell in 1872. On her death in 1900 she
was succeeded by her son Bertrand Frankland-Russell-
Astley, who was lord of the manor till his death in
1904. Chequers is now in the hands of the trustees
of his son Henry Frankland-Russell-Astley, a minor.
Chequers Court is situated in a small valley in a
position south-south-east of the parish church. The
many small hills by which it is surrounded and the
slopes and spurs of the Chilterns forming the park are
thickly wooded with beech trees, interspersed with
larch, holly, and box.
The present house dates from the end of the I5th
century, but is on the site of an earlier building of
which no traces remain. The 15th-century house
appears to have consisted of a central block with two
projecting wings, the fourth side of the court being
probably formed by a wall. In 1565 the house was
much altered by Sir William Hawtrey, but the present
north and east fronts are apparently a part of the
earlier work, though re-decorated.
The west wing was completely rebuilt by Sir George
Russell towards the end of the i8th century, and the
south front was at the same time much altered, while
both fronts were stuccoed and gothicized in the
approved manner of that date. A small wing with a
clock tower was added, a little later, at the south-
west. Considerable alterations were made during the
i gth century, and a good deal of oak panelling is
said to have been cleared out. In more recent years,
however, the house has been restored to something
approaching its original form. The gables which had
been battlemented have been restored and the stucco
almost completely cleared off. Mullioned windows
have also been inserted in place of some of the 1 8th-
century sashes and the court has been covered in to
form a hall.
The library is a large gallery occupying the greater
part of the west wing, and though altered in the i8th
century retains its mullioned windows. Over the
bay window appear the Croke arms. Over the
drawing-room bay, a part of the 1 6th-century work,
appear the Hawtrey arms and the initials A.H. and
W.H., with the date 1565. The house contains
many pictures of great interest and a large collection
of Cromwellian relics, including some of the Protec-
tor's clothes, his sword, jack boots, &c., and several
contemporary portraits.
The church of ST. PETER JND ST.
CHURCH PAUL "" consists of a chancel 30 ft. by
1 8 ft. with south organ chamber and
vestry ; a nave 52 ft. by 21 ft. 2 in. with south aisle
119 Cf. Sir Alexander Croke, Gen. Hist,
of the Croke Family ,• Visitation of Bucks,
1566 (ed. Metcalfe).
200 Feet of F. Div. Co. Mich. 14 & 15
Edw. I.
"M B.M. Add. R. 22213 ; ibid. 7383.
202 Chan. Inq. p.m. 27 Edw. Ill, pt. I,
no. 35.
«°» Ibid. 17 Hen. VI, no. 38.
2" Ibid. (Ser. 2), Ixxiii, no. +.
405 Ibid.
*• Gen. Hist, of the Croke Family.
*? Ibid.
*» Feet of F. Bucks. East. 36 Eliz.
809 Gen. Hist, of the Croke Family.
810 Feet of F. Bucks. East. 16 Chas. I.
811 Cat. of Com. for Compounding, i,
68.
818 Recov. R. Bucks. Mich. 12 Chas. II.
818 Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. 3 Jas. II.
214 Ibid. Mich. 3 Will, and Mary.
215 Ibid. Hil. 2 Anne.
916 Recov. R. East. 32 Geo. I.
81 ' Berry, Bucks. Pedigrees.
»8 Recov. R. East. 5 Geo. III.
819 G.E.C. Complete Baronetage.
336
220 Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii, 196.
821 Lysons, Magna Brit. \, 555.
222 Berry, Bucks. Gen.
223 Lysons, Magna Brit, i, 555.
824 G.E.C. Complete Baronetage.
125 Burke, Landed Gentry, I 906.
836 Ibid. Peerage and Baronetage.
™ Ibid. Landed Gentry, i 906.
228 In a lawsuit of the time of Edward I
the dedication is given as in honour
of St, Peter only i De Banco R. 15,.
m. 26.
£
o
x
h
I
u
tf
3
o
s
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flC
U
E
U
at
3
r
U
z
u
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
EI,LESBOROUGH
9 ft. wide, south porch, and a south-west tower 1 o ft.
6 in. square, all measurements being internal.
The whole building seems to be of 15th-century
date, with modern additions and repairs, and has had
its outer surface entirely renewed, so that hardly a
trace of old work shows on the outside.
The situation is an unusually fine one at the top of a
•pur of the Chiltern Hills, 500 ft. above the Ordnance
datum and overlooking the Vale of Aylesbury.
The east window of the chancel is completely
modern and of three cinquefoiled lights with tracery
over. The two windows in the north wall of the
chancel are also modern and of late 14th-century
detail, that to the east being of two lights, and that to the
west of three, while in the south wall is a two-light
window like that opposite to it on the north and
the door and arch to the vestry and organ chamber, all
modern and of plain detail. In this wall is a small
i£th-century piscina with a shelf and a bracket, the
head of its recess being embattled. The chancel arch
is also much restored, but in the main of 1 5th-century
date.
The nave is of five bays and is lit on the north by
three large three-light windows with modern tracery
of 15th-century detail in 15th-century openings.
The blocked north door is between the west pair of
windows and is of two moulded orders contemporary
with the rest ; it has a trefoiled recess for holy water
to the east. The south arcade is of four bays with
four-centred arches of two moulded orders, octagonal
pillars and capitals, the abaci of the capitals being
slightly concave in plan.
West of the arcade is a single arch to the tower
which is built at the west end of the aisle. The arch
detail is identical with that in the nave arcade, while
the abacus of the west respond of the arcade is con-
tinued round the north-east pier of the tower and
runs into the capitals of the tower arches. The west
window of the nave is of three lights like those on
the north and, like them, has modern tracery in a
15th-century opening. The west door externally
is completely modern but the internal reveal and
moulded rear-arch are of 1 5th-century date.
At the east end of the south wall of the aisle is a
two-light window similar in detail, date, and degree of
restoration to the north windows of the nave, but
somewhat broader in proportion. The south door
opposite the fourth bay of the arcade is continuously
moulded with a double ogee and, externally at least,
is quite modern. West of this is a modern single
cinquefoiled light with tracery over.
The south porch is completely modern and has a
continuously moulded entrance arch of 14th-century
detail, over which are a pair of modern niches
containing figures of St. Peter and St. Paul.
The south-west tower is of three stages with an
embattled parapet and a south-east octagonal turret
staircase, it is of considerable height with belfry
windowsof two cinquefoiled lights, single trefoiled lights
in the second stage, and a two-light west window on
the ground stage.
The font has an octagonal 14th-century bowl upon
a modern base and stem. The bowl is moulded
and of ogee profile, its faces being panelled with
flowing tracery in relief. The roofs throughout are
modern.
In a recess in the aisle is a handsome black and
white marble monument to Bridget Croke, 1638.
On a moulded sarcophagus of black marble is the white
marble effigy of a woman in the costume of the period
of Charles I, an extremely well executed and well
preserved piece of work, the various details of the
costume being treated with the utmost care and exact-
ness. Above the effigy is a white marble semicircular
pediment springing from the cornice of a complete
entablature of the composite order, which is supported
on either hand by a free and an engaged black marble
column with white marble bases and capitals. The
soffit of the entablature is panelled, the panels having
alternately cherubs' heads and rosettes in relief. The
inscription is cut on a slate slab let into the white
C»OKI. Cults a feat
btrwctn six martlets ar-
gent with a triseent tablt
on the feu* for dijftmct.
HAWTHIT. Arftnl
four leopards fauant btnd-
vaays ktnottn doubli
totssis table.
marble back and has no date. Above is Croke impaling
Hawtrey, between Croke and a lozenge with Hawtrey.
In the north aisle on the wall is a brass with the
figures of Thomas Hawtrey, I 544, Sybil his wife, and
eleven sons and seven daughters, with the Hawtrey
shield, apparently engraved over another coat. Below
is the inscription of another brass to Mary, ' somtyme
the wyfe of Willm Hawtrey,' who died in 1 555. In
the floor of this aisle are slabs to the following : Henry
Croke, 1588, with the Croke arms quartering a fesse
nebuly between three rings ; Henry Croke, 1662,
with Croke quartering a shield bearing a chaplet ;
Sir Robert Croke, 1680, with Croke bearing the
last quartered shield in pretence, and Susannah
Croke, 1685. In the chancel is also a slab to
Robert Wallis, rector, 1666. In the windows of
the organ chamber are preserved a few fragments of
1 5th and I jth-century glass. There is no woodwork
of any interest in the church, but in the vestry is a
large chest with handsome brass hinges, lock-plate, &c.
of 1 7th-century date.
The tower contains six bells, the treble cast by
Mean and Stainbank in 1870; the second, third,
fourth, and tenor by Thomas Mean, 1823, and the
fifth by G. Mean, 1863.
The church plate consists of a large covered cup of
1 569, of extremely graceful design with a band of
typical Elizabethan ornament. The sacred monogram
and some of the Crucifixion emblems have been
engraved on it at a later date ; there are also a plated
flagon and salver.
The first book of the registers contains all entries
between 1603 and 1663. The second book (over-
lapping the first) contains baptisms from 1659 to 1739 ;
burials from 1660 to 1739, with burials in woollen
from 1678 and marriages from 1662 to 1739. A
third book contains all entries from 1740, baptisms
and burials running to 1812, and marriages to 1753.
A fourth book contains the marriages and banns from
1754 to 1812.
337
43
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
Towards the close of the reign of
JDPOJfSON Henry II Gervase Paganell, then
lord of Dudley honour, granted to
the priory of Sandwell, in Staffordshire, as much of
the church of Ellesborough as appertained to his
honour.*29 In 1398 the prior and convent obtained
leave to impropriate their half of the church,830 and
on the death or resignation of the rector then holding
the benefice, to serve it by a secular priest or by one
of the monks of Sandwell. In the 1 5th century a
lease of the advowson and half the rectory nl was held
under the priory by Henry Danvers, William Danvers,
and Joan Selwood in turn."' In I 5 24, however, the
house was dissolved, and no vicarage is mentioned
amongst Its possessions,*35 but only the advowson of
the rectory of Ellesborough and tenements there, and
in 1535 the benefice is described as a rectory.*34 The
priory of Sandwell was amongst the religious houses
dissolved and granted to Cardinal Wolsey for the
endowment of his new college at Oxford,*35 and the
advowson and half the rectory of Ellesborough were in
consequence given to Cardinal College.'36 When
Wolsey fell from the king's favour his foundation was
deprived of many of its possessions ; those in Elles-
borough passed by an exchange, made in 1531 by
Henry VIII, to the Carthusian Priory of Sheen.*37
After the dissolution of Sheen in I 5 39,138 the advow-
son of the church of Ellesborough was granted to
William Sewster, who, however, very shortly obtained
leave to alienate it to William Gardiner and his wife
Anne.*39 Gardiner died seised of the advowson in
I558,'10 but his son and heir John Gardiner sold it to
Roland Beresford.'41 The advowson changed hands
from this time with great rapidity, passing from
Beresford to Henry Newman in 1599-1600,"'* and
from Newman to Thomas Weedon in 1 620.'"
Weedon held it at his death in 1624.,'" but his
brother and heir William sold it to Robert Wallis,
clerk, ten years later.*" His family still held the
advowson in I725,*44abut before 1728 it had passed in-
to the possession of Joseph Wells of Aston Clinton."4
He died in 1732, and the advowson passed to his son
the Rev. Joseph Wells, who was still the patron of
the living in i8i3.'45a In the previous year he had
sold the advowson to Sir Robert Greenhill Russell,
presumably reserving to himself the next presenta-
tion.!4S It is now in the hands of the Frankland-
Russell-Astleys. The moiety of the rectory granted
to the prior of Sandwell by Gervase Paganell was
held with the advowson until the sale of the latter to
Sir Robert Greenhill Russell ; Joseph Wells appears
to have retained the rectorial estate in his own hands.
Allotments were made under the Inclosure Act of
1803 for the glebe rights of common and the great
and small tithes. On the death of the Rev. Joseph
Wells in 1818, the allotment passed to his widow,
with remainder to her son Fleetwood Wells. The
lords of the honour of Wolverton probably granted
their half of the church of Ellesborough to their sub-
tenants, with the manor of Grove. William Brito
presented to the church in the reign of Henry II,"'
and his heirs Richard de Seyton and his wife Alice
claimed the advowson in 1276 against the Prior of
Sandwell.*48 The plaintiffs lost their case, not, how-
ever, because they had no right to the advowson, but
because their moiety of the church was not vacant at
the time. When Thomas de Seyton granted the
manor of Grove to John, Archbishop of York, and
others in I446,"9 the advowson of the church of
Ellesborough was also alienated.130 The Verneys were
enfeoffed of the advowson,251 but it seems probable
that the right to present to the church of Ellesborough
was not claimed by their successors the Eggletons.
From the 1 7th century certainly the patrons of the
other moiety alone have presented to the benefice.
Lands in Ellesborough were given for lights in the
church, and they were valued, after the dissolution of
chantries by Edward VI, at 7/. yearly/5' There is
a Baptist chapel at Chalkshire, which was built in
I873-
Dame Elizabeth Dodd's Charity for
CHARITIES almspeople and pensioners, founded by
will bearing date 2 March 1720, and
the subsidiary endowments are regulated by scheme
of the Charity Commissioners of 28 July 1885, as
varied by a scheme of 1 1 April 1899. The trust
estate consists of 36 a. I r. 15 p. in Great Kimble, let
at ^75 a year, and 5 acres of pasture land in Ayles-
bury, let at £16 a year, and £2,456 l^j. zd. India
3 per cent. Stock, with the Official Trustees, the
rents and dividends making a gross income of
In 1 907 the four inmates received 5*. a week and
£2 each in clothing, and 6s. a week was paid to four
out-pensioners.
The Poors' Allotment consists of 45 acres or there-
abouts of scrub land allotted to the poor for fuel
on the inclosure. The sporting rights are let at
^lo a year, which is the only income, and is, after
payment of rates, &c., distributed among the non-
ratepayers. In 1907, 2/. was given to seventy-one
persons.
The charity of Dame Louisa Anne Frankland
Russell founded by will, proved 1871, is regulated
by scheme of the Charity Commissioners of 4 January
1878 as modified by scheme of 3 July 1885. The
trust fund consists of .£218 12s. loj. consols, with
the Official Trustees, producing yearly £5 9*. \d.t
which is added to the funds of the coal and clothing
clubs, containing in 1907 fifty-nine members.
a>> Dugdalc, Man. iv, 90.
*"° Cal. of Papal Letters, v, 263.
481 DC Banco R. East. Hen. VII, m.
377 d-
282 Ct. of Requests, bdle. I, no. 5 ;
Early Chan. Proc. bdle. 235, no. 41 ;
ibid. bdle. 1 60, no. 9.
288 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. z), Ixxvi, no. J.
*" Valor Eccl. (Rec. Com.), iv, 249.
2"5 L. and P. Hen. Vlll, iv (i), 650,
697.
236 Ibid. 1913 (i), 1167 (i) ; ibid. (2),
4001 (2), (3), 5117 (i)} Pat. 17 Hen.
VIII, pt. i, m. 38 ; Feet of F. Div. Co.
Mich. 18 Hen. VIII.
*»7 L. and P. Hen. VIII, v, 403 : vi, 299
(ix).
188 Dugdale, Man. vi, 30.
"• Pat. 36 Hen. VIII, pt. iii ; L. and P.
Hen. yill, xix (2), 166 (82).
410 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), cxviii, no. 3.
*1 Feet of F. Bucks. East. 35 Eliz.
"I » Ibid. Hil. 42 Eliz.
<"a Ibid. Mich. 17 Jas. I.
248 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccccxx,
no. 90.
*" Feet of F. Buck». Trin. 10 Chas. I;
Common Pleas Recov. R. Trin. 10 Chas. I,
m. 9.
2«» Feet of F. Bucks. Hil. 12 Chas. I ;
338
Trin. 34 Chas. II ; Trin. 36 Chas. II ;
P.R.O. Inst. Bks. 1665, 1686, 1722 ; Feet
of F. Bucks. Mich. I Jas. II; Mich.
12 Geo. I.
245 Lysons, Magna Brit, i, 555.
*ta P.R.O. Inst. Bks. 1 745, 1749, 1804;
Lysons, Magna Brit, i, 555.
246 Sheahan, Hist, and Tofog. of Bucks.
122.
*« De Banco R. 15, m. 26. "48 Ibid.
*» Feet of F. Bucks. East. 24 Hen. VI ;
B.M. Add. Chart. 7383.
m Recov. R. Trin. 21 Hen. VIII.
251 Exch. Inq. p.m. 25, no. 12.
152 Chant. Cert. Bucks. 5, no. 67.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
HALTON
HALTON
The parish of Halton lies on the northern slopes
of the Chiltcrn Hills, and comprises 1, 45 5 J acres.1 It
is well wooded, particularly on the higher and southern
parts, about four-sevenths of the total area being
woodland. The highest point, about 800 ft. above
the Ordnance datum, is in H.ilton Wood, but in the
northern part of the parish the land lies for the most
p.ut between 300 ft. and 400 ft. above the Ordnance
datum. The Wendover branch of the Grand Junc-
tion Canal crosses the parish near the village of Halton,
but there are no natural streams of any size in the
parish. The most important road passing through
the parish is the Upper Icknield Way. The village
lies on a cross road running between the Upper and
Lower Icknield Ways, joining the latter near Weston
Turville village. The nearest station is at Wendover,
2 miles distant, on the Metropolitan Extension Rail-
way. The people are mainly occupied in agriculture,
There are gas-works on the Grand Junction Canal.
The principal building in the parish is the great
modern house of Mr. Alfred de Rothschild.
The manor of HALTON seems to have
M4NOR been in the possession of the monastery
of Christchurch, Canterbury, in the latter
part of the loth century. A tradition names Queen
Edith ' as the first donor of the
manor in 959, but there seems
to be no documentary evidence
of such a grant. Possibly it
came into the hands of the
monastery at the same time
as Monks Risborough,' which
certainly belonged to Christ-
church before 995.' There
are charters concerning land in
Halton of Archbishop ^Ethel-
noth about 1033,' and Arch-
bishop Eadsige between 1045
and 1052.* Both were dated
from Monks Risborough and
related to the gift of land at Halton by one To-
briges, who gave it after his death to Christ-
church. In the time of Edward the Confessor the
manor came into the possession of Earl Leolwine,'
who probably had no right to it, for the family of
Godwine were accused of despoiling the church of
its lands.' Archbishop Lanfranc apparently held the
manor after the Norman Conquest,' but there was
no distinction made at that time between the lands
of the archbishop and the lands of the monastery. The
restitution of Halton was probably obtained before
CHRISTCIU RCH, CAN-
Ti»u»r. Azure a emit
argent with the sacred
monogram £ table upon
the troll.
1074, and as the king gave it without demanding any
price, theclaim of the monastery must have been strong.10
In the division of the lands between the archbishop
and the monks " under Lanfranc, Halton went to the
monastery," and the prior held the manor in chief
of the king in frankalmoign until the Dissolution,1*
when it was worth £21 14*. 4^. a year." In
1541 Henry VIII granted it to the newly-formed
Chapter of Canterbury " in frankalmoign, but four
years later they were forced to make an exchange
of lands with the king," and it was sold to Henry
Bradshawe " to hold as one-fortieth of a knight's fee
for 800 marks. He probably belonged to the family
of Bradshawe of Wendover. There is a brass in
Wendover Church to William
Bradshawe, who died in 1537,
giving a list of his nine chil-
dren and twenty-three grand-
children, and it is possible
that Henry Bradshawe was
his eldest son. Henry was a
member of the Inner Temple,
and served as reader, treasurer,
and governor of the society."
He became solicitor-general
in 1540," attorney-general
five years later,10 and in 1552
Chief Baron of the Ex-
chequer." Very little is known about him beyond
the outlines of his career. He was Chief Baron till
the end of the reign of Edward VI, and witnessed
that king's will in favour of Lady Jane Grey. He
died a few weeks after the accession of Mary in 1553,
and so escaped removal from his office or further dis-
grace. According to his will the manor passed to his
widow Joan during the minority of his heir," and
she was in seisin in 1562." His heir was his son
Benedict," who was a minor at the time of his
father's death. He only survived him a few months,"
and the reversion of the manor passed to his two
sisters, Christiane the wife of Thomas Winchcombe,
and Bridget the wife of Henry White. Christiane
died in I 5 5 7," and her husband came into possession
of her moiety of the manor and held it till his death
B»AD>HAWI.
tVfO ban gulei
nine lecfardi or.
Azure
in 1574
.** when her son Benedict Winchcombe '
succeeded him. Benedict Winchcombe had however
quitclaimed 'the manor in his father's lifetime " to his
aunt Bridget, Benedict Bradshawe's other co-heiress, and
her second husband Thomas son of Richard Fermor, a
merchant of the Staple of Calais, who settled at Easton
Neston (Northants)." Thomas, though a younger
1 Information (applied by Bd. of Agric.
(190;). By thii there ire 1,112 icrei of
woodland, 271 acre* of arable and 566
acres of gratt, which girea a total exceed-
in,' the area of the parnh, owing to the
returni being made by the farmer! of
landi cultivated by them which •ometimei
citrnd into other parUhea.
LipKomb, Hht. tf Such, ii, 219,
Ci". Monki Riiborough.
Kemble, Cod. Difl. dcluuix.
'i'l. mcccxxi.
I , . rncccixxvi.
• y.C.II. Buiki. i, 233*.
•Ibid. 210.
•Ibid. 233*.
10 Dugdale, Man. i, 97.
11 Somner, Antij. tf Cam. ill.
u Tetta de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 245*.
" llunJ. K. (Rec. Com.), i, 20, 44 ;
Cat. Pat. 1429-36, p. 418 | L. end P.
Hn. yill, xyi, 87* (59).
" ytltr Eul. (Rec. Com.), i, IJ.
" L. and P. Hen. fill, x»i, 878 (59) ;
Pat. 33 Hen. VIII. pt. 9, m. 20.
" Pat. 37 Hen. VIII, pt. 6, m. 41.
W L.tnd P.He*. F7//,ii(i), 465 (51) ;
Pat. 36 Hen. VIII, ft. 9, m. 63 ( Orig.
R. ft. 5, 36 Hen. VIII, 101.
u Foat, J*d[tt of Enfl. T, 292.
339
» Pat. 32 Hen. VIII, pt. 5, m. 55.
10 Pat. 37 Hen. VIII, pt. 13, m. 21.
11 Pat. 6 Edw. VI, pt. 6, m. 13.
** Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), c. no. 2,
clxxKJv, no. i ; cii, no. 7.
» Lay Subi. R. (P.R.O.), bdle. 79, no.
188 ; bdle. 79, no. 190.
" Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), c. no. 2.
•* Ibid, cii, no. 7.
* Ibid, cliiiuv, no. I.
W Ibid. » Ibid.
* Feet of F. Buck*. Hil. 19 Elii. ; Pat.
19 Klir. pt. 3, m. (22).
•" Collina, Peerage (ed. Brydgej), ir,
200-1.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
FF.RMOK. Bendy of
eight pieces or and gules
and a chief argent with
three jleurt de Its azure
therein.
son, inherited the estate of his uncle at Summertown
and Tusmore, Oxon, besides holding the greater
part of the Bradshawe estates.31 He represented the
borough of Wycombe in 1562—3," but does not
seem to have been a member in later Parliaments.
He died before his wife,3* and at her death the manor
of Halton passed to their son and heir Richard,34 a child
of three. After attaining his majority, he settled the
manor in 1598 upon Sir Francis Wolley and his
wife Mary,35 with contingent
remainder to Lady Elizabeth
Egerton, the mother of Sir
Francis. On the death of Sir
Francis in 1601 36 Halton re-
verted to Sir Richard Fermor,
who was holding it in 1641."
Henry Fermor, presumably the
son and heir of Sir Richard,
was a papist,38 and had to
compound in 1647 for £556
for his reversionary estate in
Halton. A settlement was
made of the manor in 1656"
between Henry Fermor and
a younger Richard, presu-
mably his son and heir, and in 1671 Henry Fermor
bought from Lord Hawley and other trustees for the
sale of rents belonging to the Crown the fee-farm
rent *° of 4O/. "]\d. due from the manor of Halton.
Richard Fermor succeeded Henry before 1678, in
which year he leased the manor for ninety-nine years,41
probably in mortgage, to Sir Thomas Crewe, Edmund
Verney, Ralph Sheldon, Basil Drake, and Ambrose
Holbech, for whom presumably the last-named acted,
as his name appears in a settlement of the manor
made in 1684," and he presented to the rectory,
which was leased at the same time.43
Halton passed to Henry Fermor before 1684,"
and to his son James before 1719." In the next
year James Fermor w sold the manor with its appur-
tenances and a water-mill to Francis Dashwood,
afterwards Sir Francis Dashwood, ban., whose de-
scendants held it for more than a hundred years,47
and his grandson, Sir John Dashwood King, lived
at Halton Manor House,43 but after his death it
was unoccupied for some time. The manor was
sold either by his executors or by his son George
Dashwood in 1851 ts to Baron Lionel de Rothschild,
and Mr. Alfred de Rothschild is the present lord of
the manor.
The prior and convent of Christchurch obtained
a grant of free warren in their demesne lands in
Halton from King Edward II in i3i6,M and the
grant was afterwards confirmed by Edward III " and
Henry VI.5' In the latter charter, reference is made
to a charter of Henry II, granting warren in the lands
of the church of Holy Trinity, Canterbury, in Buck-
inghamshire and Oxfordshire,53 so that the monks of
Christchurch had presumably exercised the privilege
long before the grant of Edward II. The prior also
claimed to hold the view of frankpledge in Halton,54
and to have waifs and the chattels of felons and fugi-
tives, and was quit of suit to the shire and hundred
courts for himself and his men.55 When his privi-
leges were challenged by Edward I he quoted a
charter of William the Conqueror5* to Archbishop
Anselm with a long list of ancient privileges. He
also claimed to have his own gallows, tumbril, and
pillory, but it was said that neither tumbril or pillory
existed at Halton.57 No privileges are mentioned in
the grant to Henry Bradshawe, nor in documents
relating to the Fermors. In 1786, however, George
Dashwood claimed certain general privileges in the
manor,58 and presumably both the Fermors and Dash-
woods held the view of frankpledge.
A piece of land in Halton appears to have been parcel
of the honour of Gloucester in the 1 4th and 151)1
centuries. Presumably it had formed part of the lands
of Walter Giffard, Earl of Buckingham,59 many of
which descended to the Earls of Gloucester, and from
them to the Earls of Stafford, who were overlords of a
knight's fee, or part of a fee, in Halton in the 1 4th
century. In 1386°° John Hampden was the tenant
of this land, and may presumably be identified with
the John Hampden who inherited Upton Manor in
Great Kimble in I377-61 His heir is mentioned
in 1460," but this land in Halton is not again
referred to.
The church of ST. MICHAEL is a
CHURCH completely modern structure consisting
of a shallow chancel, a nave of four
bays with north and south aisles, and a western tower.
It was built in 1813 and is faced with Heath stone,
and designed in a poor adaptation of 13th-century
style. The nave is separated from the aisles by
arcades of four bays with pointed arches and columns
with foliate capitals. The windows are either lancets
or have simple tracery. The tower is a small one of
three stages with an embattled parapet, and contains a
stair to a small gallery, projected through the tower
arch, which serves as an organ loft. The seating,
fittings, woodwork, &c., are all modern, except the
font, which is of late 18th-century date. It is con-
structed of white marble inlaid with coloured
marbles, and has a small square bowl, ornamented
with grotesques, which is supported upon a twisted stem.
The only trace remaining of the old church, which
occupied about the same site, is some stone curbing
laid down to the east of the present church, marking
the lines of the old chancel.
In the sanctuary, affixed to the north wall, is a
brass, removed from the old church, with the figures
of a man in armour, his wife, four sons, and four
daughters. The inscription runs : ' Orate p alab}
81 Collins, Peerage (ed. Brydges), iv,
Zoo- 1.
»2 Ret. ofMemb. of Parl.
88 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), clxxxviii,
no. i. M Ibid.
M Ibid. (Ser. 2), Misc. 9 Jas. I, dviii,
no. 8. M Ibid.
w Lay Subs. R. (P.R.O.), bdle. 80, no.
302.
88 Cal. of Com. for Compounding, i, 68.
89 Recov. R. Trin. 1656.
40 Close, 24 Cha«. II, pt. 9, no. 12.
41 Ibid.
43 Recov. R. Trin. 36 Chas. II.
48 Notes of F. Bucks. Hil. ; 30 & 31
Chas. II; (P.R.O.), Inst. Bks. 1691.
44 Recov. R. Trin. 36 Chas. II.
48 Ibid. Hil. 6 Geo. I.
46 Close, 7 Geo. I, pt. 18, no. 21.
47 Recov. R. Trin. 26 Geo. Ill ; Lysons,
Magna Brit, i, 567. 48 Ibid.
49 Sheahan, Hist, and Tofog. of Bucks.
138.
50 Chart. R. IO Edw. II, m. 24, no. 60.
61 Ibid. 38 Edw. Ill, no. 156, m. 8, no.
>5-
34°
" Cal. Pat. 1429-36, p. 418.
» Ibid.
w Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
" Plac. de Quo (far. (Rec. Com.), 86-7.
* Ibid.
*7 Ibid.
" Recov. R. 26 Geo. III.
69 Cf. Great Kimble.
60 Chan. Inq. p.m. 10 Ric. II, no. 38 ;
ibid. 16 Ric. II (pt. i), no. 27.
« Cf. Great Kimble.
M Chan. Inq. p.m. 38 & 39 Hen. VI,
m. 59.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
HALTuN
henrici Bradschawe Armig'i capitfis bardl seen dm
Regis & Johane uxoris eius qui quidem hcnric' obiit
vii°
xxvij0 die julie a° dnlmv'liij A°R^ V Reg' E vi" cui'
Sic ppicietf dcf.' On another plate is a shield of
arms : Two bends and a chief with a fleur de lis
between two roses dimidiated, quartering quarterly I
and 4, Party bendwise a crosslet, 2 and 3, On a cross
five lozenges, the whole impaling a trellis. This is
perhaps a memorial of a Fermor marriage.
The tower contains four bells, cast by John Briant
of Hertford in 1814.
The church plate comprises a covered cup of 1 569,
the foot of which was remade in the 1 7th century ;
an unmarked standing paten and a salver of 18th-
century date and a ewer of 1830.
The first book of the registers contains baptisms
from 1663 to 1718, marriages from 1607 to 17*4,
with a gap between 1639 and 1654, and burials
from 1606 to 1773, with notes of affidavits of burials
in woollen from 1678. The second book contains
baptisms from 1729 to 1757, marriages from 1744
to 1757 with a gap between 1751 and 1754, after
which date the entries are in the form of the 1754
printed book, and burials between 1729 to 1770.
The third book contains marriages with banns between
1760 and 1812 ; and the fourth baptisms from 1763,
and burials from 1783, both running to 1812.
The church of Halton, like that
4DVOWSON of Monks Risborough, belonged to
the deanery of Risborough, in the
exempt jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Canterbury."
The exempt jurisdiction was abolished in 1 841," and
Halton, like Monks Risborough, is now in the diocese
of Oxford. The church of Halton presumably came
into the possession of the monastery of Christchurch,
Canterbury, as early as the manor, but it is not defi-
nitely mentioned till the 1 3th century. After the
separation of the monastic and episcopal possessions it
passed to the archbishops," who held the advowson of
the church until the reign of Henry VIII." Arch-
bishop Cranmer surrendered it" with the ratification
of the Dean and Chapter of Canterbury to the king,
and Henry VIII granted it in 1565-6™ to Sir
Edward North and his wife Alice. Edward VI ap-
pears to have made reparation for the loss of the
advowson of Halton Rectory to the Archbishop of
Canterbury," but it was itself never recovered. Sir
Edward North sold it in 1 548-9 n to Henry Brad-
shawe, and from him it passed to the Fermors. In
1667 the advowson was quitclaimed by Henry and
Richard Fermor to Henry and Francis Harris and the
heirs of Henry," and the latter probably presented in
1678. John Harris was the new rector, and in a list
of rectors :l he is said to have been presented by
Francis Harris, and admitted by Archbishop Sancroft,
but owing presumably to some confusion the arch-
bishop is said elsewhere to have collated to the rectory
himself in that year." The right to present to the
rectory passed for the next time to William Wilmer,
who exercised his right in 1685." Some years pre-
viously, however, in 1678," Richard Fermor had
granted a lease of the advowson for 99 years, and the
lessee, Ambrose Holbech, presented to the rectory
twice in 1691.™ The Fermors recovered possession
of the advowson before 1719,'' and it was sold with
the manor to Sir Francis Dashwood,™ and has since
then been in the possession of the lord of the manor,™
Mr. Alfred de Rothschild being the present patron of
the living. The rectors of Halton do not seem to
have been in any way distinguished like many of the
clergy in Buckinghamshire. Two of them indeed
seem to have had an unenviable reputation. In 1 3 1 8 "
Philip de Walton was accused with several others of
theft at Hulcott, and in the 1 7th century John
Larimer obtained a grant of pardon " for the man-
slaughter of ' Christopher Harper, his servant, who
was hurt through his passionate and indiscreet correc-
tion, but lived 9 months after.'
In 1553, as appears from a Decree
CHARITIES of Commissioners for Charitable Uses,
1630, Mrs. Alix Bradshawein her will
gave out of her lands in Edlesborough and Dagnall
2O/. a year, of which 6/. SJ. was for the poor of
Halton. See under Wendover. The annuity is paid
by Earl Brownlow.
The poor of this parish are entitled to a moiety of
the income of Mrs. Joan 1'radshaw's Charity in Wend-
over. In 1906 the sum of £16 121. 6J. was received
as the half share of the George Inn, Wendover.
Widow Turpin's Charity consisted of a rent-charge
of 1 8/. payable out of a close called Turpin's Spring,
in this parish, which is distributed in bread at the
church porch on St. Thomas's Day. An annuity of £1
is paid by Mr. A. C. de Rothschild.
Edmund Lambert, M.D., by will dated 1st Octo-
ber 1866, administration of which was granted
5 February 1878, left a sum of ordinary stock of the
Great Western Railway, now represented by £100
like stock, the dividends to be applied for the benefit
of the poor. The stock, together with a sum of
I ii. \d. consols, is held by the Official Trustees, pro-
ducing in 1907 £5 7/. 6J.
The incomes of these charities are administered to-
gether. In 1906 £18 was distributed in money, £5
in blankets, and £i in bread.
• Cf. Monkt Riiborough. « Ibid.
» Ctl. Pat. 1 131-47, p. 199.
14 fa/or Eccl. (Rec. Com.), iv, 249.
« Pit. 37 Hen. VIII, pt. 14.
" Ibid.
•• Pat. I Edw. VI, pt. i, m. 16.
7« Feet of F. Buck*. Hil. i Edw. VI;
Ent. a Edw. VI.
1 Feet of F. Bucka. Mich. 19 Chai. II.
'* Lipicomb, Hiit. of Bucki. ii, 119.
7* P.R.O. Intl. Bki. 1678.
'« Ibid. 1685.
7> Notes of F. Bucki. Hil. 30 & 31
Chai. II.
7* P.R.O. In.t. Bki. 1691.
tf Recov. R. Hil. 6 Ceo. I.
"* Cloae, 7 Geo. I, pt. 18, no. 21.
?• Recov. R. Trin. 26 Geo. Ill ; Intt.
Bki. (P.R.O.), 1736, I755,>765. '8°5.
1826; Shcahan, Hut. and Tofog. of Bucki.
138.
10 Cal.Pat. 1317-11, p. IOO.
n Ctl. S.P. Dam. 1667, p. 459.
341
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
HULCOTT
Hulcott is a small parish in the Vale of Aylesbury,
lying on the Hertfordshire border, and containing
74-of acres of land,1 of which 36 acres are arable hnd,
595 acres permanent grass, and no woods.3 The
population is almost entirely occupied in agriculture,
and as might be expected from the large proportion of
pasture to arable land, the farms are chiefly grazed by
dairy stock. The land lies between 200 ft. and 300 ft.
above the Ordnance datum ; 3 the subsoil is Kimme-
ridge Clay and Portland Beds,4 and the surface is clay.
The parish is well watered by the Thistle Brook,
and there is water in the village of Hulcott. No
main road passes through the parish, two branch
roads from the Aylesbury to Tring road being the
most important. The Aylesbury branch of the Lon-
don and North- Western Railway passes through the
parish, and the nearest station is Marston Gate, on
the same line, 2 miles away. An Act of Parlia-
ment was obtained for the inclosure of the two
parishes of Bierton and Hulcott, and the award was
given on 15 July 1780.'
The village stands round a wide green, the church
being on the east side, and the manor house near it on
the south. There is a moated site to the east of the
church, with water in some parts of the moat. The
vicarage stands on the south of the village green, the
schools on the west, and scattered cottages on the
north-west. The manor house has been modernized,
but the staircase is of early 17th-century date, and
in the panels of its timber partitions are some well-
preserved contemporary paintings, with the stories of
Phaedra and Hercules.
There appears to be no record of the
M4NOR manor of HULCOTT before the I3th
century. In 1254, however, it was held
of the honour of Wormegay,6 which at that time was
held by William Bardolf, through his mother, Beatrix,
the heiress of William de Warenne, of Wormegay.7
His descendants in the direct line held the overlord-
ship of Hulcott till the reign of Henry IV,8 when
Thomas, Lord Bardolf, was attainted and forfeited his
lands.9 His two daughters and heiresses recovered
many of his possessions,10 but the overlordship of
Hulcott appears to have lapsed.
The manor was held by the family of Graunt
under the Bardolfs in the 1 3th century. In 1254
and 1284 William Graunt was lord of Hulcott, which
he held by charter of the king.11 He lived till after
the year 1290, and was succeeded by his son Walter
Graunt." In 1322 Walter made a settlement of the
manor, excepting certain tenements which had already
been dealt with,13 by which he was to hold it for life,
with remainder to his son William and Clarice wife
of the litter." William succeeded his father in the
manor,15 and died presumably towards the close of
the reign of Edward III, leaving a daughter Joan as
his heir.16 In 1369 17 William Brys or Bryd and his
wife Joan made a settlement of half the manor, to be
held by William and Joan and their heirs, or by
default by the heirs of Joan. Hence it appears to
have been held in her right, and probably this Joan
was the daughter and heiress of William le Graunt.
Two years later, however,18 William Bryd and his
wife sold the manor to William Brancingham, with
the homage and services of their tenants. In I 307 19
the son and heir of Joan daughter of William le
Graunt was called John de Bury. There may have
been a confusion in the names of Bury and Bryd, or
Joan may have been married
twice. The manor must have
AAAAAA
BUTLER. Or
indented azure.
been conveyed very shortly by
Brancingham to James Butler,
Earl of Ormond, who was
holding certainly as early as
1396, and died seised of it
in 1405."" His successor, the
fourth e.irl, together with John
Neel, clerk, granted the manor
of Hulcott to James Butler,
Earl of Wiltshire, son and
heir of the earl, and others,
and to the heirs of the body of the Earl of Wilt-
shire.21 The Earl of Ormond died in 1452," and
his son obtained licence to alienate the manor in
mortmain to the hospital of St. Thomas of Aeon,"
of which John Neel was then
master. The hospital was
founded " by the sister of
Thomas Becket, and the But-
lers were her descendants.
The master of the hospital25
and his successors were to find
two priests to pray daily for
the souls of the king and
queen, and many of the an-
cestors of the Earl of Wiltshire
and Ormond. Of these, his
father and mother were both
buried at the hospital. A con-
firmation of this grant of the manor was obtained from
Parliament in I472.26 In 1535 " the hospital held
the manor of Hulcott, which was then in lease to
Benedict Lee for sixty-one years.*8 After the Dissolu-
tion Henry VIII granted the reversion, and the rents
HOSPITAL or ST.
THOMAS or ACON.
Azure a cross Jorrny
party gules and argent.
1 Ord. Surv.
2 Inf. from Bd. of Agric. (1905).
" Ord, Surv.
« y.C.H. Bucks, i, Geological Map.
6 Com. Incl. Award.
6 Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
1 Excerpta e Rot. Fin. (Rec. Com.), i,
411.
8 Feud. Aids, i, 86 ; Chan. Inq. p.m.
32 Edw. I, no. 64* j ibid. 3 Edw. Ill
(istnos.), no. 66 ; ibid. 13 Ric. II, no. 6 ;
ibid. 4 Hen. IV, no. 39 ; ibid. 7 Hen. IV,
no. 1 9.
9 Parl. R. (Rec. Com.), iii, 6o6a.
10 Ibid, v, 222* ; Cal. Pat. 1405-8, p.
448.
11 Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 20 ; Feud.
Aids, i, 86.
" Cal. Close, 1288-96, p. 132 ; Abbrev.
Plac. (Rec. Com.), 344 j Chan. Inq. p.m.
32 Edw. I, no. 6411.
18 Feud. Aids, i, 112; De Banco R.
Mich. 21 Ric. II.
" Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 16 Edw. II,
nos. 4, 5.
15 Chan. Inq. p.m. 13 Ric. II, no. 6.
16 De Banco, Mich. 21 Ric. II, R. of
Protections and Chart.
V Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 43 Edw. III.
18 Ibid. Hil. 45 Edw. III.
19 De Banco, Mich. 21 Ric. II, R. of
Protections and Chart.
80 Chan. Inq. p.m. 7 Hen. IV, no. 19.
81 Ibid. 31 Hen. VI, no. n; Pail.
R. (Rec. Com.), v, 2570.
m Chan. Inq. p.m. 31 Hen. VI, no. n
88 Parl. R. (Rec. Com.), v, 257*.
21 Ibid. as Ibid, vi, 62*.
* Ibid.
V Valor Eccl. (Rec. Com.), i, 391.
l*L.andP. Hen. Pill, xiv (i), 1056
(+7)-
: STAIRS OF THE MANOR HOCSE
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
HULCOTT
reserved on the lease, namely £14 13*. 4</., to Richard
Greenway, gentleman usher of the King's Chamber.**
He held the m.inor at his death in 1551-2, leaving
his son Anthony, a minor, as his heir." Anthony
Greenway sold the manor in 1571 to John Fountain
and his son Thomas." They held jointly till the
death of John, from which time Thomas held it
alone." On his death in 1 623 he was succeeded by
his nephew, another Thomas Fountain." The manor
was again sold in 1639" to William Klmcs, Thomas
Elmes, and Thomas Wy.ni ; the last-named seems to
have obtained seisin of the manor, and a quitclaim
was made in 1652 to him by Thomas and Mary
Fountain and Alice Fountain, widow." Twenty
years later" Thomas Westerne and George Wyan
sold the manor to Timothy Neale and his wife Anne.
The Neales held the manor till 1741, when John
Neale and his wife, together with Thomas Hanbury
and William Neale, sold it to Sir John Fortescue
Aland, justice of Common Pleas." In 1746, on
retiring from the bench, he was created Baron For-
tescue of Credan in the peerage of Ireland." He
died in the same year, and his son Dormer Fortescue
Aland, the second baron, inherited the manor, but died
unmarried in 1781." By his will, dated 27 March
i 779, he left it to Dame Anne Tynte to hold for
life, then to John Parkhurst in fee-tail male, and then
in default to John George Parkhurst, also in fee-tail
male, with certain remainders and limitations.40 Dame
Anne Tynte was the widow of Sir Charles Kemys
Tynte, the grandson of Grace Fortescue, a cousin of
the first Lord Fortescue of Credan." Dormer Park-
hurst was one of the executors of the first baron's
will," and the devisees in remainder in the second
Lord Fortescue's will were probably his heirs. John
Parkhurst died during the lifetime of Dame Anne,0
and on her death in 1798 the manor of Hulcott
came into possession of John George Parkhurst.44
The latter had to pay an annuity of £joo to one
John Purling,4* and he had already granted away his
reversionary interest in Hulcott to Robert Walpole to
secure the better payment of the annuity.4* In 1 794
the annuity was £1,350 in arrears,4' and Parkhurst
had other debts.48 Various arrangements were made,
and Walpole agreed to convey the manor to John
Purling.4* Finally it was put up for sale by public
auction,50 and was bought by John Baker,41 who was
lord of the manor in 1813." Hulcott was purchased
in the middle of the 1 9th century by Baron Lionel
de Rothschild," and Mr. Leopold de Rothschild is
now lord of the manor.
A mill is first mentioned at Hulcott in 1322."
The Fountains in the reign of Queen Elizabeth held
a water-mill,** which is again mentioned while the
Neales held the manor." In 1652 a windmill is
mentioned as well as the water-mill, and was quit-
claimed with the manor to Thomas Wyan.*7
William le Graunt claimed to hold the view of
frankpledge and the assize of bread and ale before
the justices in 1276, but it is not clear whether he
made his claim for Hulcott or only for land in Aylcs-
bury." He held a free fishery in 1281, which is
again mentioned in a document of 1672."
The church of ALL SJ1NTS has a
CHURCH chancel 22ft. 9 in. by 1 2 ft. 6 in., nave
3 2 ft. 6 in. by 1 4 ft. 3 in. with north
porch, and south aisle 14 ft. wide. Over the west end
of the nave is a wooden belfry.
There are no details earlier than the 1 4th century,
but the walling of the nave is probably older than this
date. The chancel has a marked deviation to the
north, and seems to have been rebuilt in the first half
of the 14th century, its north wall being set outside
the line of that of an older chancel, while itt south
wall is in part on the older foundations. A south
transept chapel was added to the nave about 1 3 30, and
this was thrown into a south aisle early in the 1 6th
century, its east and south walls being apparently
rebuilt in the process. A second bay was added to
the south arcade, but the western part of the south
wall of the nave was left in position, with a window
in it as it now appears.
The bell-turret is difficult to date, its timbers being
for the most part rough; it may be 15th-century
work, and is set rather irregularly across the west end
of the nave, resting on four large posts.
The east window has a 14th-century rear-arch
and jambs, with shafts and roughly cut heads serv-
ing as capitals ; the tracery, of two cinquefoiled
lights with a sexfoil over, is an insertion of c. 1420.
On either side are plain image brackets, half-octagonal
in plan. The eastern part of the north wall is
blank, but near the west end is a narrow doorway
with chamfered jambs and segmental head, having
a label with large dripstones carved as grotesque
beasts' heads. West of it is a small square-headed
light, perhaps coeval with it. In the south wall is
a piscina with a roughly trefoiled head, and to the
west of it a window of two cinquefoiled lights with
a quatrefoil over, good work of c. 13 30, with moulded
inner and outer jambs and head. The rest of the
south wall is blank.
The chancel arch is of two orders chamfered on the
east with double ogee moulds on the west ; the
responds are half-octagonal with moulded capitals and
bases c. 1 340.
The nave has a large north window of late 15th-
century date, of three cinquefoiled lights, and a 14th-
century north doorway with a moulded label under a
plain stone porch which may be of I jth-century date.
"Pat. 31 Hen. VIII, pt. iii, m. 14)
L. tmd P. Hen. fill, sir (l), 1056 (47).
M Chin. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), *cr, 4.
11 Feet of F. Buck*. Eatt. ind Trin.
13 Eli*.; Recor. R. Eatt. 1] Eliz. The
lei»ee of th« manor, Benedict Lee, wat
then dead ; hit widow Joan married
Michael Harcourt, and theie were panics
to the tale bjr Anthony Greenway.
*• Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccxlri, 119.
*• Ibid, ccccus, 1(7.
" Recor. R. Hil. 14 Chat. I.
M Feet of F. Buckt. Mich. 16152.
M Ibid. Trin. 14 Chat. II ; Recor. R.
Mich. 6 Ceo. I.
*; Feet of F. Buckt. Trin. 14*15
Geo. II.
" G.E.C. Comflttt Pttraffi Diet. Nat.
Biag. i, 116.
" G.E.C. dm f leu Peerage.
40 Lord Clermont, Life, Worki, and
Family Hiit. of Sir John Fortune, ii |
Recor. R. Trin. 42 Geo. III.
41 Lord Clermont, Life, fftrh, and
Family Hiit. of Sir yobn Fortetcue, ii, 51.
« Ibid. 68.
u Recov. R. Trin. 4* Geo. III.
« Ibid.
«• Ibid.
1 1bid.
« Ibid. East. 58 Geo. III.
« Ibid. Trin. 42 Ceo. III.
*» Ibid.
>> Feet of F. Buck*. Hil. 39 Geo. III.
** Lyiont, Magna Brit, i, 582-3.
*• Sheahan, Hiit. ami Tofof. tf Such.
163.
*• Feet of F. Mich. 16 Edw. II.
** Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccxlvi, 119;
Recov. R. Hil. 14 Chat. I.
*• Recor. R. Mich. 6 Geo. I.
*' Feet of F. Buckt. Mich. 1652.
" HunJ. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 47 ( Attrev.
Plat. (Rec. Com.), 274.
H Feet of F. Buckt. Trin. 24 Chat. II.
343
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
It has a plain chamfered outer arch and a square-
headed window on the west.
The east bay of the south arcade has an obtusely
pointed arch of three chamfered orders and half-
octagonal responds with moulded capitals and bases,
while the second bay has plain splayed jambs without
capital or base and an arch of two chamfered orders. It
is roughly worked and of 16th-century date, the
eastern arch being of much better detail, c. 1330. To
the west of it a 14th-century window remains in the
wall, unglazed, and having lost its central mullion ; its
tracery is a 15th-century insertion, of two cinquefoiled
lights with a quatrefoil over. The west window of
the nave is of three cinquefoiled lights, contemporary
with the north window. The south aisle has an east
window of three trefoiled lights under a straight-lined
four-centred head, and south of it is a small image
bracket. To the north in the angle of the aisle is
a blocked square-headed recess which seems to have
been a squint to the chancel. The south and west
windows of the aisle are of the same character as the
east window, and all are of the 1 6th century, as is the
rather clumsy trefoilsd piscina recess at the south-east.
The south doorway seems to be 14th-century work
of the first half of the century, and has a continuous
casement moulding between two sunk chamfers with a
label, much patched with Roman cement.
The bell-turret is covered with modern weatherboard-
ing and has a short spire ; in the belfry stage the beams
have a double hollow chamfer. All the wood fittings
of the church are modern, but in the south aisle is a
1 7th-century altar table ; the corbel for the south end
of the rood-loft remains. The altar is modern with a
white marble front elaborately carved in relief with the
journey to Calvary.
In the south aisle is an altar tomb against the south
wall with a chamfered marble slab, evidently not in its
original position, and having indents of the brasses of a
man and his wife and one child, with four shields and
a marginal inscription.
The font at the west end of the south aisle is
modern, octagonal with quatrefoiled panels on the
bowl.
There are three bells, the treble blank, the second
apparently an alphabet bell with a blundered inscrip-
tion, and the third of 1621 by James Keene of
Woodstock.
The plate consists of a chalice, paten, flagon, and alms-
dish, of plated ware and modern date.
The first book of the registers contains entries from
1539 to 1805, the second being the marriage register
1754-1810, and the third the baptisms and burials for
1806-12.
In the 1 4th century the advowson
ADVOWSQN of the church of Hulcott belonged to
the Graunts,60 and from the heirs of
William Graunt it probably passed with the manor to
James Butler, Earl of Ormond. His grandson James,
Earl of Wiltshire, granted it to the Hospital of St.
Thomas of Aeon," in whose hands it remained till
the dissolution of the hospital in 1538." In that
year Benedict Lee presented to the rectory, by reason
of a grant from the Hospital of St. Thomas of Aeon,65
but in the recital of two leases of the manor to Lee
the advowson is expressly excepted.61 Still he may
have obtained a separate lease from the hospital.
Henry VIII granted the advowson of the rectory
to Richard Greenway, subject to the lease to Lee.64
After Lee's death 66 his widow Joan held the advow-
son, she and her second husband, Michael Harcourt,
presenting to the rectory in 15 57." The advowson
was sold, together with the manor, to John Fountain,68
and was held by the lords of the manor till 1741.
In 1 666 ra George Wyatt presented, presumably hav-
ing acquired the right for one time. Timothy Neale
presented in 1679,'° and John Neale owned the
advowson in 1 7 1 9." It was not sold to Sir John
Fortescue Aland with the manor, but continued with
the Neales, who, however, did not hold it for long,
since in 1755 John Marriot presented." In 1768
the name of Edward Bangham occurs as patron,71
but he probably held the presentation for one time
only. In 1776 '4 Thomas Marriot and his wife Jane
sold the advowson to Stephen Langston, who pre-
sented to the rectory in 1779 and 1790." The
Rev. Stephen Langston appears as the next patron in
1 803." Rebecca Langston, presumably his widow,
presented in 1817," and in 1819 John Brereton
appears to have become possessed of the advowson,
and was holding it about l847,78 but before 1862 it
had passed to Dr. Kenny.79 It was shortly afterwards
purchased by the Rothschilds, and Mr. Leopold de
Rothschild is now the patron of the living.
There are no endowed charities in this parish.
60 Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 16 Edw. II;
Mich. 43 Edw. Ill ; Hil. 45 Edw. Ill;
East. 26 Hen. VI.
61 Par!. R. (Rec. Com.), v, 257* ; vi,
6^a.
M Dugdale, Man. vi, 646.
63 Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii, 340.
"Pat. 31 Hen. VIII, pt. 3,m. 14.
65 Pat. 3 8 Hen. VIII.pt. 7.
66 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), jrcv, 4.
67 Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii, 34.0.
68 Feet of F. Bucks. East, and Trin. 13
Eliz.
M (P.R.O.) Inst. Bks. 1666.
7° Ibid. 1679.
71 Recov. R. Mich. 6 Geo. I.
7' P.R.O. Inst. Bks. 1755.
7» Ibid. 1768.
7< Feet of F. Bucks. East. 16 Geo. HI.
7s P.R.O. Inst. Bks. 1770, 1790.
7«Ibid. 1803.
77 Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii, 340.
78 Ibid.
,H»f.a«J Tofog. ofJ3uclts,i6j.
344
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
LEE
LEE
Legh, xiv cent.
Lee (or The Lee) it a small parish, lying on the
northern slopes of the Chiltern Hills. It contains
502 acres' of land, which are divided into arable
and permanent pasture lands in nearly equal propor-
tions. There are about 14 acres of old woodlands
and about 16 acres of more recent plantings.' The
land lies mainly between 600 ft. and 700 ft. above
the Ordnance datum, the highest point rising to
730 ft.' The subsoil is chalk.4 The parish is very
secluded, no highway or railway passing through it.
Several winding by-roads are the chief thorough-
fares ; one, starting out from the high road between
Wendover and Amersham, forms the northern parish
boundary from King's Ash to the hamlet of Lee
Gate ; King's Lane, in which are some remains of the
ancient earthwork known as Grim's Dike, also bounds
the parish on the west and south. The village of
Lee lies on another by-road, on three sides of a
village green, on which is a large glacier-borne sand-
stone rock dug up in the neighbourhood, and erected
on a pedestal by the present lord of the manor. The
village contains a small number of picturesque houses,
farms, and cottages. The nearest stations are Wen-
dover and Great Missenden, on the Metropolitan Ex-
tension Railway, which are 4 and 3 miles away
respectively. The official postal address for the village
is The-Lee. The population is mainly employed in
agriculture. Straw-plaiting was formerly a con-
siderable industry and is still carried on to a limited
extent. The manor house, which was restored and
enlarged in 1901, is the residence of the lord of the
manor, Mr. Arthur Lasenby Liberty.
The manor of LEE is not mentioned
MdNOR in Domesday Book, but from later evidence
it seems probable that it was granted by
the Conqueror to Odo, Bishop of Kayeux, and fol-
lowed the same descent as Weston Turville,' being
held of the honour of Leicester, and later of the
Duchy of Lancaster.' In the 1 2th century it was
held by Ralph de Halton,' but it is not clear whether
he held it directly from the Earl of Leicester, or from
the Turvilles as mesne lords. He was succeeded by
Geoffrey de Turville, clerk,' the brother of William
de Turville, who was lord of Weston Turville * at the
close of the izth century. Geoffrey granted Lee to
Missenden Abbey in franlcalmoign,10 and his grant
was confirmed by William de Turville " and Robert,
Earl of Leicester. Unfortunately the charters, though
they appear in the index of the Missenden Cartulary,
are missing in the text, but there are several papal
confirmations" of the grant. In 1535" Lee and
Brondes were enumerated amongst the temporalities
of the monastery, and were valued at not. a year.
Brondes was presumably a freehold farm in the
neighbourhood of Lee. A reference in the Monastics
records that Ralph Marshall, admitted Abbot of
Missenden on 10 July 1356, was convicted of counter-
feiting and clipping the king's coin, namely, groats
and sterling, at his manor called ' Legh,' near Mis-
senden. "* After the dissolution of Missenden Abbey
the manor of Lee " remained in the possession of the
Crown till Edward VI granted it in I 547 " to Lord
Russell. Francis Russell, Earl of Bedford, succeeded
him, and was probably holding it in 1583," when he
mortgaged certain land in Lee. How long he retained
the manor does not appear, but it is not mentioned in
the inquisitions taken on his lands at his death, and
at the death of his son." Its subsequent history is
very obscure, but it seems
probable that it passed into
the hands of the Plaistowe
family during the i/th cen-
tury. William Plaistowe ob-
tained a lease of the tithes in
Lee in 1635 " for ninety-
nine years. In 1641 " his
land there was assessed at 50;.
annual value, but it is not
certain that he also held the
manor. His family, however,
was obviously established in
Lee at this time, though on
another supposition the Plaistowes only obtained the
manor after the Civil War, during which many of
the Russell estates were sequestered.
Before 1665 William Plaistowe had been succeeded
by Thomas Plaistowe, who may probably be identified
with the Thomas Plaistowe of the Lee, whose monu-
ment is in Lee Church.10 He died in 1715 at the
age of eighty-seven. In a monument in Little Kimblc
Church he is called Thomas Plaistowe of Amersham,"
and this suggests that he was the first of the family to
own the manor, and that their chief estate had pre-
viously been at Amersham. At Lee he was succeeded
by his youngest son William, who married Dorothy
the daughter of Richard Plaistowe of Small Deane."
He in turn was succeeded by his son Thomas, pre-
sumably the Thomas Plaistowe who died in 1785,°
leaving an only daughter and heiress Elizabeth."
She is said to have advertised ** for a husband, and by
this means married an Irishman named Henry Deer-
ing. Mrs. Deering died in 1812," and her husband
held the manor for many yean after her death,"
Before 1861, however, it reverted to the family of
Plaistowe, and in that year John Plaistowe was lord
PLAISTOWC. Culit a
lion argent tetn-etn Hva
btndi or.
1 OrJ. Surv. A proposal ii it pment
before the Buck* Count/ Council to en-
large the emitting pariih of Lee bjr adding
to it certain outlying portion! of the
pariihei of Great Miitendenand Wendorer.
1 Inf. supplied bjr Bd. of Agric. (1905).
• OrJ. Sitrv,
• f.C.H. Buch. i, Geological Map.
• Cf. We»ton Turrille.
• Marl. MS. 3688 | (P.R.O.) Rental,
and Sunr. (fen. »er.), portf. 19, no. 1 3.
7 Harl. MS. }688 ; Cal. of Papal Lreurt,
»i434-
• Ibid. Harl. MS. 3688.
• Cf. Wetton Turville.
" Harl. MS. 3688.
11 Ibid.
" Ibid, j Col. ofPaftl Ltluri, T, 434.
u yalar Eetl. (Rec. Com.), iv, 146.
u* Dugdale, Man. vi, 547, note i.
M(P.R.O.) MUc. Bk.. (Aug. Off.),
CCCCT, 19.
» Pit. I Edvr. VI, pt. I.
" Fret of F. Bucki. Ent. 15 Eli*.
'" Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccii, no.
iSa.
345
>» Feet of F. Buck*. Mich. 1 1 Chat. I.
" (P.R.O.) Lay Subi. bdle. 80, no. 301.
" Lipicomb, Hiit. of Bucki. ii, 358,
quoting monument in Lee Church.
"Ibid.ii, 3 5 5.
"Ibid, ii, 358, quoting monument In
Lee Church.
« Ibid.
M Ibid.) Lyiont, Marna Brit, i, 594.
14 Lipicomb, Hiit. ofButki. ii, 356.
" Ibid.
" Lyiont, Mafia Brit, i, 594; Lipicomb,
loc. cit.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
of the manor.*9 In 1900 Mr. Lasenby Liberty
bought the manor from John Plaistowe, and is the
present owner of the estate.
The Abbot of Missenden obtained a grant of free
warren in his demesne lands at Lee from Edward I
in 1287-8," which grant was confirmed by Henry VI.30
The abbot held a view of frankpledge for his tenants
at Lee, paying 2s. a year to the Duchy of Lancaster."
The supposition that Ralph de Halton held Lee of
the Turvilles as mesne lords receives corroboration
from the fact that he apparently did not hold the
whole of Lee. Hence some land remained with the
Turvilles, and was not included in Geoffrey de Tur-
ville's grant to Missenden Abbey. After the division
of the manor of Weston Turville between the three
heiresses" of the second William de Turville, the fee
that passed to Hugh de Herdebergh included land
not only in Weston, but also in Little Broughton,
Bedgrove, and Lee,33 which all formed one township
in 1285. This land in Lee presumably belonged to
the manor of Weston Butlers, and afterwards to the
united manor of Weston Turville.54
The church of ST. JOHN THE
CHURCHES B4PTIST was built in 1868, on a
site 100 yds. or so east of the old
church, and consists of a nave, chancel, south porch,
and north organ chamber. It is constructed of brick
in 13th-century style. At the east end of the south
wall are a well-designed piscina and sedile of the
middle of the 1 3th century, which were removed
from the old church, and reset in their present
position. Both have shafted jambs and a scroll
label with buckle drips. The head of the piscina is
moulded with a roll and a filleted bowtel, and has an
inner cinquefoiled head, and there is a shelf, while
the drain is old but mutilated. The head of the
sedile has a plain hollow-chamfered arch, and in both
cases the engaged shafts have circular moulded capitals
and bases. There are also a number of wall monu-
ments removed from the old church, one to Elizabeth
(Welch) the wife of Thomas Plaistowe, died 1762, of
grey and white marble in Adams style, and another,
an excellent though somewhat florid piece of work, is
in white marble with a rococo cartouche and cupids'
heads, to Thomas Plaistowe, died 1715. All the
fittings of the church are modern, including the font,
which is octagonal.
There is one bell in a small stone bell-cot or gable,
at the west end of the church. This bell was
removed from the old church, and is of considerable
antiquarian interest, only four others by the same
founder being known. It is inscribed ' Michael de
Wymbis me fecit.' It is not certain when Michael
de Wymbis lived, but the style of his bells suggests a
date of about 1 2 go.34"
The church plate consists of a flagon, chalice, and
two patens, all the gift of Mrs. Elizabeth Deering in
181 1, and hall-marked for the previous year.
The first book of the registers contains burials
between 1679 and 1802, baptisms between 1 679 and
1797, and marriages between 1700 and 1799. After
this there is a gap, the baptisms being continued in a
second book with entries between 1804 and 1812,
while the other entries are only continued from 1812.
An extensive rectangular earthwork probably marks
the boundary of the old monastic grounds, and there
are traces of fishponds on the north.
The OLD CHURCH, now used as a Sunday school
room, is built in chalk, and consists of a nave and chan-
cel in one range and a south porch ; it is lit on the
north by three lancets of 13th-century date, and on
the south by two, while the east window is a late 1 3th-
century one reset with shafted jambs and inserted
tracery. There are two doors to the south, a small
one near the eastern end, and one at the western end
of 15th-century date with a four-centred head, on the
rear-arch of which are some traces of colour decoration.
The south porch is of early I gth-century construction.
There is also a west door, a late insertion with a round
head, and traces of a consecration cross on the masonry
below. On the west and north interior wall are
some indistinct traces of colour decoration and, pre-
served on shelves, a number of fragments of late 13th-
century date, capitals, portions of mouldings, &c., but
the dismantled state of the building makes it impossible
to assign these to their places. The font, which was
removed when the new church was built, forty years
ago, has recently been re-erected in its original
position. It is old but of uncertain date. The
stained glass in the east window, the gift of the present
lord of the manor, contains in the centre light the
figure of John Hampden, supported in the two side
lights by Oliver Cromwell and Miles Hobart. At
the top of the centre light, and occupying its original
position in the window, is a very interesting and
well-preserved fragment of 13th-century glass.
The chapel of Lee was originally
4DyOtVSON appendant to the church of Weston
Turville,34 and seems to have been
served by the rector of that parish. Ralph de Halton,
when he held Lee,36 made an agreement with regard
to the chapel, by which he was to pay 5;. a year at the
altar of Weston Turville on St. Thomas' Day in com-
mutation for all tithes due from his land at Lee.
Geoffrey de Turville 37 confirmed this agreement. He
appears to have granted the chapel as well as his
manor to the abbey of Missenden,38 and various dis-
putes arose as to the payments due from it to the rec-
tor of Weston Turville. It was finally agreed however
that the abbot and canons were to pay 6s. a year to
the mother church, and were to hold the chapel in
peace.39 The chapel was served by the canons, and
the rectory was impropriated. In I 5 3 5 40 the benefice
was described as the rectory of Lee and Brownes and
was let at farm, the tenant in 1 540 being Thomas
Adam." Lord Russell obtained a grant of the rectory
as well as the manor of Lee in I 547 4> and no endow-
ment seems to have been left for the chapel. No
vicarage appears to have been ordained," and though
there were churchwardens in 15 37," two years earlier,
"SSheahan, Hiit. and Tofog. of Bucks.
169.
w Chart. R. 30 Edw. I, 95, m. 5, no. 32.
80 Cal. Pat. 1+22-9, P- 344-
11 (P.R.O.) Rentals and Sury. (gen. «er.),
portf. 19, no. 13.
83 Cf. Weston Turville.
88 feud. Aids, i, 86.
84 Cf. Weston Turville.
«*• A. H. Cocks, Church Bells of Bucks.
444-
8S Had. MS. 3688.
M Ibid. »7 Ibid. » Ibid.
89 Ibid. ; Valor Etc!. (Rec. Com.), iv,
247.
40 Valor Ecd. (Rec. Com.) iv, 247.
41 (P.R.O.),Misc. Bks.(Aug.Off.), ccccv,
fol. 2q.
346
«« Pat. I Edw. VI, pt. i.
w In 1422 in the Lincoln Episcopal
Registers there is an entry of the ordina-
tion of ' Lega,' but it was appropriated to
the priory of Canons Ashby. Hence it
seems impossible that it refers to Lee ;
Bp. Fleming's Inst. 1420-6.
44 L. and P. Hen. VIII, lii (2), 221.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
GREAT MISSENDFN
when it was in the hands of the abbot, ° it was still
called the chapel of Lee. It is not certain whether
Lcc had become a separate parish at this time, but
the extraordinary position of the chapel was apparent
as early as 1537. In that year two churchwardens,
Richard Westwood and Thomas Newynt(on), appear
to have gone round the neighbouring parishes "ask ing
charity for their church. A curious story has been
preserved that on going to the house of Francis
Fongc of Little Missenden for this purpose, Alice his
wife asked them to come in to drink. In the house
Westwood saw a book of the gospels in English lying
open in the window. He read the opened pages and
shortly afterwards accused his hostess, who was there-
upon indicted for heresy." The result unfortunately
is not forthcoming. The efforts of the church wardens
to raise money probably enabled them to tide over
the difficulty caused by the dissolution of the monas-
tery, and the chapel may very likely have been con-
tinuously served by the ex-canon, John Slythurst, to
whom an extra pension of £8 a year was granted in
1539 to serve the cure at Lee ;** if he refused, the
pension was reduced to £$ 6s. 8</. How long this
arrangement went on does not appear, but probably
the lords of the manor were forced to make some
reasonable provision for a curate at Lee Chapel. A
vicarage is spoken of in the grant of the manor and
rectory to Lord Russell," and possibly some assign-
ment of land had already taken place. The lords of
the manor were the patrons and presented to the
chapel as a donative." The living at the present
day is a vicarage, the advowson belonging to Mr.
Lasenby Liberty.
The Charity of Nicholas Almond,
CHARITIES founded by deed 1629, see under
Wcndover. The poor of this parish
receive IO/. a year from this chanty.
In 1880 Miss Harriet Day by will proved at Lon-
don 4 June, left to the vicar and churchwardens
£4,000 stock, now represented by £4,045 is. yd.
Corporation of Croydon 3 per cent, stock, producing
yearly £121 js., to be applied 8/. weekly to each of
five poor women, not under the age of sixty years, who
should have dwelt for ten years within a radius of 2
miles of Lee parish church and be communicants there ;
£2 to vicar for making weekly payments aforesaid ;
residue to said women in coal at midsummer. The
widows receive 8/. a week according to the terms of
the will.
In 1 88 1 Abraham Watson by will, proved at London
9 May, left to the vicar andchurchwardens £200 now
represented by £200 consols, dividends to be applied
in food and coals at Christmas amongst the poor.
The sums of stock are held by the official trustees.
GREAT MISSENDEN
Missedene (xi cent.) Messenden, Mussenden.
The parish of Great Missenden has an area of
5,8 1 9 acres. It attains an elevation of considerably
over 600 ft. along the centre of the parish, to which
an offshoot of the Chiltern Hills penetrates ; the
highest point, just north of Springfield Farm, being
a little over 650 ft. To the east the ground slopes
down slightly, but remains for the most part consider-
ably over 500 ft. To the west it falls away more,
but rises again to above 650 ft. on the western
boundary of the parish, where the village of Prest-
wooJ is situated.
Three thousand one hundred and ninety-two acres
of the parish are arable land, 1,7 1 oj acres permanent
grass, and 513 acres wood.1
The River Misbourne flows through Great Missen-
den from north to south, the Metropolitan Extension
Railway and the main road from London to Wcndover
running parallel to it a little to the west. The large
village of Great Missenden is situated on this road,
Missenden Abbey and Park with its fine sycamore
trees lying at the south end. The village comprises
a number of modern houses of the better sort with a
few half-timbered, and others of brick of the Georgian
period. The railway station, on the Metropolitan
Extension Railway, is near the village. The road
leading past the church of St. Peter and St. Paul to
Chesham turns eastwards from the main road about
the centre of the village. Four roads branch off to
the west, leading to Prestwood and Hampden.
In the north-east of the parish is Lee Common
and the greater part of the hamlet of Lee Clump ;
in the north-west Woodlands Park, with Grim's
Ditch. Ballinger Common and h.imlct lie about
half-a-mile south of Lee Common, with Potter Row
to the east. At South Heath, about a mile east from
the village of Great Missenden, is a camp and moat.
Part of Hyde Heath is included in this parish in the
south-east, and Heath End is situated in the extreme
south-west. Peteriey Manor lies north of the latter,
with the straggling village of Prestwood to the west
and north of it. The soil is alluvial, with a chalk
base, abounding in the deposit of flint and shells.
The subsoil is chalk. There are disused chalk-pits to
the east of Prestwood and near Potter Row, and
another east of Hyde Heath, near which there is an
old gravel-pit. There arc extensive brickworks also
near Hyde Heath.
The Inclosure Award was made in 1855 and is in
the custody of the Clerk of the Peace.'
In the time of Edward the Confessor
MANORS the manor of GRE4T MISSENDEN
was held by a thcgn of the king, Sired,
the ion of Alveva. In 1086 it formed part of the
lands of Walter Giffard, and was then assessed at ten
hides.' This Walter was the son of Walter Giffard
de Longueville, who is said to have come to England
with William the Conqueror and died before 1085.
The son Walter was probably created Earl of Buck-
ingham by William II, and died in 1102, leaving an
only son, also named Walter, who died without issue
in 1164.' The family of Giffard thus became ex-
tinct, but their estates were known as the honour of
GifTard until about 1300. Great Missenden was
«* AV»r Efd. (Rcc. Com.), ir, 147.
«• L. and P. Hn. fill, xii (i), ill.
« Ibid.
« Ibid. UT (i), 261.
* Pat. i Edw. VI, pt. I.
u Cf. Lytont, Magnti Brit, i, 594, 694 ;
I.ipicomb, Hal. of Bucks, ii, 356; Shea-
ban, Hist, and Tofcg. of Bucks. 169.
347
1 Inf. from Bd. of Agric. (190$).
* Com. Incl. Awards, ii.
• y.C.H. Bucks, i, 247*.
' G.E.C. Com flue Pttragr.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
held of this honour by the service of one knight's
fee.5
After the death of Walter Giffard his lands re-
mained for some time in the king's hands, but in 1191
they were restored by Richard I to his two nearest
heirs, who were descended from Rohais, sister of
Walter Giffard, first Earl of Buckingham. Rohais
had married Richard Fitz Gilbert, from whose elder
grandson Richard was descended the first claimant in
1191, Richard de Clare, Earl of Hertford. From
the younger grandson, Gilbert de Clare first Earl ot
Pembroke, was descended Isabella de Clare, whose
husband William Marshal was the second claimant in
1191, on his wife's behalf.6 The Giffard estates in
CLARE. Or threi
cheverons gules.
MARSHAL. Party vert
and or a lion gules*
England seem to have been assigned to William Mar-
shal, for the honour is later found in the possession
of his son Walter, Earl of Pembroke,7 one of the
five brothers who in turn succeeded to the earldom.
At the death of the last of the five without issue in
1245 the Marshal estates were divided between his
sisters,8 the honour of Giffard or part of it appar-
ently being apportioned to Isabella the wife of Gil-
bert de Clare, Earl of Hertford and Gloucester, and
son of the Richard de Clare who claimed the honour
in 1191. The honour, including the overlordship of
Great Missenden, descended with the Earldom of
Gloucester,9 and passed upon the death of Gilbert de
Clare in 1 3 1 4 to his daughter Margaret, who married
firstly Piers Gaveston, Earl of Cornwall, and secondly
Hugh Audley, who became Earl of Gloucester.10
Upon the death of Hugh Audley in 1347 the over-
lordship of Great Missenden passed to his daughter
M rgaret, who was the wife of Ralph Earl of Staf-
ford," and descended with that earldom " until its
forfeiture in 1521, when it came into the possession
of the Crown.
The sub-tenant of Great Missenden in 1086 was
Turstin, son of Rolf,13 of whose descendants nothing
is known. The manor seems
to have been granted early in
the 1 2th century to William
de Missenden, who founded
the abbey of Missenden in
1133." He had a son Hugh,
who took the surname of de
Noers, which had perhaps been
assumed by his father also.15
Hugh de Noers became lord
Of the manor before 1141 16 STAFFORD. Or a che-
and was still living in 1 1 66," veron gulei.
but was succeeded soon after
by his son William de Noers,18 who died before
1185, for in that year his son William was a minor
in the custody of Henry de Pinkeni.19 William de
Noers the younger died, however, about 1189, and
his lands passed to his brother Hugh,10 whose daughter
and heir Joan married Hugh de Sanford,11 and was
holding Missenden together with her husband in
1233." Hugh seems to have died in 1233 or I234>"
and Joan about 1252. She left two daughters,
Christiana, who married first William de Sideham,"
and secondly John de Plessy, afterwards Earl of
Warwick," and Agnes, the wife of Matthew Husee.'6
The manor of Great Missenden was divided between
these two heiresses, the moieties being known at a
later date as Overbury and Netherbury.
The moiety of the manor of Great Missenden
subsequently known as O7ERBURT was assigned to
Agnes and Matthew Husee. Matthew died before
1254, at which time the wardship of his son Henry
was purchased by John Maunsell, whose niece, Joan
Fleming, Henry was to marry.87 Henry Husee lived
until 1 290,*° when his lands passed to his son Henry,
who was succeeded about 1332 by a third Henry, to
whose mother Isabella one-third of the manor was
assigned in dower.*9 In 1 348 the manor was con-
veyed to Thomas de Mussenden,30 the king's groom,
who seems to have settled it on himself in that year,
although Henry Husee did not finally quitclaim his
right in the manor until 1356." Certainly Thomas de
Mussenden was in occupation before that date. He
was still living in 1367, and his wife Isabella, widow
• Red Sk. Excb. (Rollt Ser.) i, 3 12 ; Gt.
R. of the Pipe (Rec. Com.), 1189-90, p.
37 ; Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 247,
258 ; Rit. Hund. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
6 G.E.C. Complete Peerage.
^ Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 247 ;
G.E.C. (Complete Peerage) says that the
English estates were granted to Richard,
Earl of Hertford, but it seems that they
only came into this family by a later
marriage.
8 G.E.C. Complete Peerage.
» Plac. de Quo. War. (Rec. Com.), 95 5
Feud. Aids, i, 85-98 ; Chan. Inq. p.m.
1 8 Edw. I, no. 36 ; ibid. 20 Edw. I,
no. 156 ; ibid. 29 Edw. I, no. 54 ; Chan.
Inq. p.m. 8 Edw. II, no. 68.
» Ibid. 1 1 Edw. II, no. 74 ; G.E.C.
Complete Peerage ; Chan. Inq. p.m. 6
Edw. Ill (ist. nos.), no. 66 ; Feud. Aids,
i, 123 ; Chan. Inq. p.m. II Edw. Ill (ist
nos.), no. 38.
11 Chan. Inq. p.m. 21 Edw. Ill (lit
nos.), no. 59.
18 Ibid, i Hen. IV, pt. i, no. 73, and
pt. ii, no. 20 ; ibid* 8 Hen. IV, no. 19 ;
ibid. 8 Hen. V, no. 87 ; ibid. 2 Edw. IV,
no. 10 ; ibid. 2 Ric. II, no. 20 ; ibid. 3 Ric.
II, no. 43 ; Inq. a.q.d. file 401, no. 10 ;
G.E.C. Complete Peerage.
» V.C.H. Buck:, i, 247*.
14 Chan. Inq. p.m. 3 1 Edw. Ill, no. 2, 5 ;
Harl. 3688. According to another docu-
ment (Lansd. 257 A) William de Missen-
den founded the abbey in 1336. Possibly
this it a confusion with another man of
the same name, who, perhaps, gave it ex-
tensive endowments.
15 Ibid. fol. i8a and b.
" Ibid. fol. 1 8*.
1? Red Bk. ofExch. (Rolls Sen), i, 312.
18 Harl. 3688, fol. i8i.
19 S. Grimaldi, Rot. de Dominabus, 20.
80 Gt. R. of the Pipe (Rec. Com.), 1 189-
90, p. 37.
M Harl. 3688, fol. 20 ; Testa de Nevill
(Rec. Com.), 259-61.
*> Cal. Close, 1231-4, p. 330.
348
88 Excerpta e Rot. Fin. (Rec. Com.), i,
253 ; ibid, ii, 147; Chan. Inq. p.m. 37
Hen. Ill, no. 8.
84 Excerpta e Rot. Fin. (Rec. Com.), i,
253-
25 G.E .C. Complete Peerage.
88 Excerpta e Rot. Fin. (Rec. Com.), i,
253 ; Close, 37 Hen. Ill ; MSS. Cardig.
quoted by Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii,
361.
*7 Dugdale, Baronage, i, 623, quoting
Pat. 37 Hen. Ill, m. 20; Rot. Hund.
(Rec. Corn.),!, 33.
88 Ibid, i, 44 ; Plac. de Quo War.
(Rec. Com.), 95 ; Feud. Aids, i, 85 ; Chan.
Inq. p.m. 1 8 Edw. I, no. 36 ; ibid. 6
Edw. Ill (ist nos.), no. 66 j Feud. Aids,
i, 123.
29 Cal. Close, 1330-3, p. 469.
80 Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 22 Edw.
Ill ; Chart. R. 28 Edw. Ill, m. 3, no.
12.
81 Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. 20 Edw. Ill ;
Chart. R. 41 Edw. Ill, m. 3, no. 13.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
GREAT MISSENDEN
of Sir John Golafre, survived until after 1383."
Edmund de Missenden, son and heir of Thomas,
died in I 394," the manor having been settled on his
wife Juliana for the term of her life and one year be-
yond. She married secondly Thomas Shelle, who
died about 1400," and died herself in 1407, when
the manor passed to her son Bernard de Missenden.*
Bernard died in 1420, leaving two daughters,
Katherine and Alice," the manor being apportioned
to the elder, who married John Iwardby.*7 Nicholas
Iwardby, son of John,** became lord of the manor
upon the death of his father," and was succeeded by
his son John in 1462," who being under age was
placed under the custody of Richard Fowler." He died
in 1485, leaving three daughters, Elizabeth wife of
William Elmes and afterwards of Thomas Pigot,
Margery wife of Ralf Verney, and Helen who
married first William Cutland " and secondly Thomas
Clifford." This manor was apparently assigned to
Elizabeth, the eldest daughter, as it afterwards de-
scended in the family of Elmes. John, son of
William Elmes, succeeded his father,44 and in 1557-8
the manor was held by Edward or Edmund Elmes,
son of John.4* Edmund's son, John Elmes," was lord
of the manor previous to 1624, in which year he
died, and was succeeded by his brother Thomas.47
The latter died in 163 2," and Ovcrbury passed to
his son William,4' who was succeeded in 1641 by his
son Arthur.60 Arthur Elmes and his wife Jane were
still holding it in 1660," but later there must have
been a sale, for in 1684 Ovcrbury appears in the
possession of William Flcetwood, owner of Nether-
bury.*' The two manors being thus again united
descended together ** and formed once more the single
manor of Great Missenden.
The moiety of the manor of Great Missenden
assigned to Christiana and John de Plessy was sub-
sequently known as NETHERBURT. After the
death of Christiana John married Margaret, Countess
of Warwick, in whose right he became Earl of War-
wick.*4 Upon his death in 1263 this manor passed
to his son Hugh de Plessy,** who lived until about
1292." He was succeeded by his son Hugh in that
year," and in 1301 by his grandson of the same name,
who was then a minor in wardship of John de Se-
grave.*1 A fourth Hugh, son of the last, became
lord of the manor in 1337,** his mother Millicent
retaining half of it in dower.*1 He died between
1351 and 1357, half of his lands passing to his sister
Eleanor, who was the wife of John Lenneysey," or
Lenveysey, and the other half remaining for life to
his widow Elizabeth, who married secondly Roger
Elmerugge, and reverting upon her death in 1378 to
John son of John Lenneysey,** who had succeeded
his father before I374.*3 John Lenneysey the younger
died in 1379, and his lands passed to his kinsman
John Cheyne of Isenhampstead *4 (now Chenies), who
in 1381 conveyed Netherbury to trustees for the pur-
pose of a gift to Missenden Abbey." They leased it
for life to Isabella de Missenden, widow of John
Golafre and lady of the manor of Overbury, and in
1383 conveyed the reversion in mortmain to the
monastery of Missenden.** Netherbury presumably
remained in the possession of that house until its
dissolution, and afterwards in the hands of the king
until 1614, when it was granted to Sir Marmaduke
Dan-ell.*7 He was still holding the manor in 1623,
and had a son and heir Sampson,*8 who perhaps suc-
ceeded him. Sir Marmaduke died some time before
1638, by which date his widow Anne had married
Gilbert Neville." By 1655 another Marmaduke
Darrell " had succeeded to the manor,71 and soon after,
apparently later than 1663, conveyed it to Sir William
Bowyer, for in 1 668 he sold it to William Fleetwood,71
who died in 1691. He was succeeded by John
Fleetwood," said to have been his son, and said to
have been succeeded in 1745 by his sister Mary,74 who
had married Thomas Ansell in 1715." Thomas and
Mary Ansell had two sons, Thomas and John, who
both died unmarried, whereupon the manor came to
their daughter Mary, wife of Thomas Goostrey.7'
Mary died in 1780, and after the death of her hus-
band the manor passed to their eldest daughter Mar)',
the wife of William Lowndes, who died in 1786."
Great Missenden is said to have been sold in
1787 to James Oldham Oldham, who died in
1822,™ after which the manor came into the posses-
sion of George Carrington,7* in whose family it has
" Inq. i.q.d. file 401, no. 10. She wat
•aid to be the kinswoman and heir of
William de Mittenden, erroneously re-
ferred to ai founder of the abbey in I 336.
Lantd. 207 A, fol. 491. Thomai de
Miuenden ii here stated to be the ion of
John Marshall of Miuenden.
n Chan. Inq. p.m. 18 Ric. II, noi. 30
and 33.
" Ibid. I Hen. IV, pt. i, no. 73 ; pt. ii,
no. zo.
" Ibid. 8 Hen. IV, no. 19.
"Ibid. 8 Hen. V, no. 87.
•" Lantd. MS. 107 A, fol. 491.
"Ibid. "Anct. D,C. 1181.
40 Chan. Inq. p.m. a Edw. IV, no. 10.
41 Early Chan. Proc. bdle. 31, no. 455.
41 Chan. Inij.p.m. (Ser. i), «liv, 91.
a Liptcomb, ///if. of Bucki. ii, 395.
44 Metcalfe, r/iif. Nortlutn, it.
44 Ibid. ; Mem. Patch. Rec. 4 It 5
Phil, and Mary, rot. 1 6.
44 Metcalfe, fiiit. Nort/iann, 18.
<; Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. j), ccccviii,
no ; Recor. R. Bucki. Mich, zz Ja». I,
rot. 80.
•Hit Inq. tlatet that he held both
Ovcrbury and Netherbury, but the latter
appear* to hare been at thit time in the
poMctaioo of Sir Marmaduke Darrell.
49 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. z), cccclxviii,
87 ; Feet of F. Buck*. Trin. 9 Cha«. I.
*° Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. z), ccccicvii,
88.
" Recov. R. Buck*. Mich. 1 z Chat.
II, rot. Si ; Feet of F. Bucki. Mich, iz
Chat. II.
" Feet of F. Bucki. Trin. 36 Chat. II.
" Ibid. Eatt. 3 Geo. III. ; ibid. Trin.
1} Ceo. III.
M G.E.C. Com f left Pttragt ; Rot. Hund.
(Rec. Com.), i, zo.
** Chan. Inq. p.m. 47 Hen. Ill, no. 27.
u Rot. Hund. (Rec. Com.), i, 44 j Plae.
di Quo War. (Rec. Com.), 9$; t'tud.
Aidi, i, 8;.
*• Chan. Inq. p.m. zo Edw. I, no. I $6.
*• Ibid. Z9 Edw. I, Do. $4; t'cuJ
Aidi)\, 98 j ibid, i, iiz.
"Chan. Inq. p.m. II Edw. Ill (lit
not.), no. 38 ; Ftud Asdi, i, 113.
«• Abkrro. Rat. Orif. (Rec. Com.), ii,
lie.
" Feet of F. Div. Co. Hil. 31 Edw.
III, no. 3z ; Chan. Inq. p.m. z Ric. II,
no. ZO.
" Chan. Inq. p.m. z Ric. II, no. zo.
M Feet of F. Div. Co. Mich. 48
Edw. Ill, no. 1 10.
M Chan. Inq. p.m. 3 Ric. II, no. 43.
349
" Feet of F. Buckt. 5 Ric. II, no. 4.
M Inq. a.q.d. file 401, no. 10 ; Cal.
Pat. 1381-5, p. 264.
" Pat. iz Jat. I, pt. v, no. iz. In
1577 Robert Bradbury died teited of the
rcveriion of the ' manor of Miuenden '
after the death of Margaret hit wife. Hit
heir wat hit brother Henry. Pottibly thit
document refert to Netherbury ; Chan.
Inq. p.m. (Ser. z), clziviii, 54.
w Feet of F. Bucki. Mich, zi Tat. I.
" Cal. S.P. Dot*. 1638-9, p. 380.
*° Pottibly the tame ai Marmaduke
Darrell mentioned in 1613 (Feet of F.
HerU. Mich, zi Jat. I) ; Recov. R. Mich.
15 Chat. II, no. 17.
"' Feet of F. Bucki. Mich. 1655.
71 Lantd. 93, no. 94 ; Feet of F. Bucki.
Eait 24 Chat. II.
"• Recov. R. Bucki. Mich. 10 Anne,
rot. $8.
'4 Lipicomb, Hiit. ofBiuh. ii, 377.
74 Ibid. 387, quoting Pariih Reg.
"Ibid. 377 ; Feet of F. Bucki. Bait. 3
Geo. HI ; Lipicomb, Hut. of Biub. ii,
387, quoting Parith Reg.
"Ibid. 377.
"• Lipicomb, ///'if. of Bucki. 385, quoting
Monumental Inscription.
"Ibid. 378.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
since remained. Mrs. Carrington was lady of the
manor until after 1899 ; Mr. George Carrington is
the present lord.
The privilege of holding a fair on the eve and day
of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin (14 and
1 5 August) was granted by Henry III to Joan de
Sandford,80 and confirmed in 1367 to Thomas de
Missenden.81 A fair is vaguely mentioned in the
grant of Netherbury to Sir Marmaduke Darrell.**
Later, fairs were held on Easter Tuesday and the
Monday after Michaelmas, but have been abolished
since 1883.
A market to be held weekly on Tuesdays was
granted to Joan de Sandford together with the fair,
and follows the same descent. It does not now sur-
vive.
View of frankpledge is mentioned in Great Missen-
den as early as I254-63 It remained with the courts
leet in the possession of the overlords until the I ;th cen-
tury,84 and was leased by them to the sub-tenants. In
the reign of Edward I the sub-tenants of both moieties
of Great Missenden claimed to hold the view to-
gether, paying ids. for it to the Earl of Gloucester.
They also held tourn twice a year ' without any ser-
vant of the king,' and had the right of gallows, pillory,
and tumbril.84
Free warren was granted to Henry Husee in his
moiety of Great Missenden in 127 1,66 and was con-
firmed to Thomas de Missenden in I354.8'
A water-mill called Deep Mill, which is still in
existence, in the south of the parish, on the River
Misbourne, seems to have belonged, until the Dissolu-
tion, to Missenden Abbey.88 It was granted in I 545
to Richard and Robert Taverner,89 after which it
came into the possession of Anthony Nyxe, miller,
who sold it in 1584 to William Fleetwood, who died
seised of it in I594.90 In 1610 it was granted to
David Fowles, who married a Fleetwood," but had
returned to William's grandson John Fleetwood before
l639,9> after which it descended in that family with
the manor of Great Missenden.93 A windmill is
mentioned in I773,93a and is perhaps that now situ-
ated at Prestwood.
The reputed manor of PETERLET or PETER-
LErSTONE (Peterlaia, xii cent.) belonged at an early
date to Missenden Abbey, and seems to have been
given to that monastery by Hugh de Noers and his
son William in I I4i.94 It remained in the possession
of the abbey until its dissolution,^ when it seems to
have been granted to Geoffrey Dormer.96 It was held
of the king as of his manor of East Greenwich.97 In
1551 Geoffrey conveyed it to Robert Woodliffe,98 but
pos;ibly for a term of years only, or in mortgage, for
Robert Dormer, Geoffrey's grandson,99 appears as lord
of the manor in 1580. In 1557 Robert Woodliffe
settled Peterley upon himself and Anne Drury, whom
he was about to marry. He died in 1593 and was
succeeded by his son Drew Woodliffe,100 who in 1596
joined with his mother in conveying the manor back
to Sir Robert Dormer.101 Sir Robert was created by
James I Baron Dormer of Wyng, and hereditary Chief
Avenor and keeper of the king's hawks.10* He died
in 1616, having settled his newly-built manor house
of Peterley on his wife Elizabeth for her life, with
reversion to his third son Robert,103 who is referred to
as Robert Dormer of Peterley.104 The latter died in
1656 and was succeeded by his son Charles,105 and by
his grandson Charles in 1677. ,m The last-named
Charles became Baron Dormer of Wyng upon the
death of his cousin Rowland Dormer in 171 2,107 and
the manor of Peterley has since descended with that
barony, and is now the residence of the thirteenth
baron.108
The Abbot of Missenden obtained a grant of free
warren in Peterley in 1302, which was confirmed in
I426.109
The lyth-century house having been allowed to
fall into decay was completely destroyed and replaced
by a small building of no particular interest in the
first half of the igth century.
The ABBEY OF GRE4T MISSENDEN for
Arroasian Canons was founded in 1133 by William
de Missenden, lord of that manor, who endowed it
with lands in the parish, including Potter Row (Pot-
terewe), Ballinger (Balenger), Kingshill (Kyngeshull),
Peterley, Prestwood, and Moretensend.110 The ad-
vowson of the monastery remained in the hands of his
successors.
Upon the dissolution of the monastery of Great
Missenden the site and lands belonging were granted
early in 1541 to Richard Greenway, a gentleman
usher of the king's household, for twenty-one years.111
8° Chart. R. 41 Edw. Ill, m. 3, no. 13.
81 Ibid.
83 Pat. iz Jas. I, pt. v, no. 12.
88 Rot. HunJ. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
84 Chan. Inq. p.m. 8 Edw. II, no. 68 ;
ibid. 1 1 Edw. II, no. 74 ; ibid. 21 Edw.
Ill (ist nos.), no. 59 ; ibid. 10 Ric. II, no.
38 ; ibid. 16 Ric. II (pt. i), no. 27 ; ibid.
22 Ric. II, no. 46 ; ibid. 4 Hen. IV, no.
KPlac. Je Quo War. (Rec. Com.),
95 ; Chan. Inq. p.m. n Edw. Ill (ist
nos.), no. 38.
*6 Col. Chart. 1257-1300, p. 176.
»' Chart. R. 28 Edw. Ill, m. 3, no.
12.
»8 L. and P. Hen. VIII, xx (2), 496
(7)-
89 Ibid.
90 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccxxxriii,
69.
»' Pat. 8 Jas. I, pt. 35, no. I ; Lips-
comb, Hitt. of Bucks. 386, quoting Paro-
chial Reg.
m Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccccxci,
88.
83 Rccov. R. Bucks. East, i Jas. II, rot.
191 ; Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. 13 Geo.
III. »» Ibid.
W Harl. 3688, foL i8A. He gave a
virgate of land in Peterleia held by Le-
venadus the Smith.
•* Cal. Pat. 1422-9, p. 344 ; Dngdalc,
Man. vi, 549.
86 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccxxxiv,
34-
>' Ibid. Misc. 21 Chas. I, pt. 32, no.
105.
93 Ibid. (Ser. 2), ccxxxiv, 34.
M Genealogist, vii, 173 ; Recov. R.
Bucks. East. 22 Eliz. rot. 105. In 1574
there was a grant of Peterley to Anthony
Kynwelmershe and his heirs. Probably
he was a fishing grantee. Pat. 17 Eliz.
pt. xi, m. 5.
100 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccxxxiv,
34 ; Fine R. 35 Eliz. pt. i, no. 37.
lul Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 38 & 39
Eliz.
1»" G.E.C. Compltte Peerage.
108 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccclviii,
IO2.
10< G.E.C. Complete Peerage. Robert
Earl of Carnarvon, grandson and heir of the
350
first Baron Dormer of Wyng, appears from
his inquisition in 1645 to have been seised
of the manor of Peterley, but this must
have been a false claim, for his uncle
Robert was still living, and was holding
the manor just before his death in 1656 ;
Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii, 384, quoting
monumental inscription ; Feet of F.
Bucks. Trin. 1656.
105 G.E.C. Complete Peerage.
'«• Ibid. ; Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. J
Will, and Mary.
I0' G.E.C. Complete Peerage.
108 Burke, Peerage, I 907. A so-called
manor of Peterley appears in the posses-
sion of William Fleetwood in 1684, and
in that of his descendants in 1763 and
1773. It was perhaps an error of expres-
•ion arising from their holding lands in
Peterley ; Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. 36
Chas. II ; ibid. East. 3 Gco. Ill ; ibid.
Trin. 1 3 Geo. III.
109 Cal. Pat. 1422-9, p. 344.
«° Harl. 3688; Valor Eccl. (Rec. Com.),
iv, 247 ; Dugdale, Afon. vi, 548.
111 L. and P. Hen. I III, xvi, 726 ;
Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), xcv, 4.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
GREAT MISSENDEN
MIIIINDIN AIIIY.
Ermine two ban wavy
table vjitk a croxier or
bendviiayt over all.
Richard lived until 1552, but he seems to have sur-
rendered the grant shortly before, as in 1550 and
1551 Edward VI gave the site of the abbey to his
sister Princess Elizabeth for life.1" At the end of the
same reign it was granted to
the Duke of Northumber-
land,"1 who was, however,
executed in the same year
for his support of Lady Jane
Grey, and his lands forfeited.1"
Missenden Abbey then re-
mained in the possession of
the Crown until 1560, when
it was granted for thirty years
to Richard Hampden."' In
1574 the reversion of the
abbey lands was granted to
Robert Earl of Leicester,1"
who sold it in the same year
to William Fleetwood. The latter died in 1594 and
was succeeded by his son Sir William,"7 to whom the
abbey was confirmed in 1612. John Fleetwood, son
of Sir William Fleetwood, inherited his father's
estates in 1 63 1, '"and died in 1639 leaving a son
William who was only aged 4^ years at his father's
death. In 1672 he became lord of the manor of
Great Missenden, in which the site of the monastery
presumably became absorbed.
The house now called Missenden Abbey stands on
the site of the cloister of the monastic buildings, and
contains a good deal of old masonry. The church,
which stood to the north of the cloister, is completely
destroyed, and a kitchen garden now coven its site,
but the walls of the eastern range of claustral build-
ings are in large measure preserved, and the open
ijth-century roof which covered the dorter of the
canons is still in existence, and parts of it may be seen
in various bedrooms now occupying the upper story
of the east wing of the present house. Unfortunately
no mediaeval masonry details are visible, and though
the present kitchen must approximately occupy the
lite of the chapter house, no trace of the ancient
arrangement remains. The walls of the southern
range, which must have contained the frater, still
stand in part, as do probably those of the western
range, and the area of the cloister with its walks is
almost entirely filled in with additional buildings, the
corridors on the ground floor evidently following very
nearly the lines of the former south and west walks of
the mediaeval cloister. These corridors, with most of
the architectural features of the house, are in the
imitation gothic of the early I gth century, and have
a vaulted plaster ceiling, and the whole building has
evidently undergone many alterations, a 17th-century
picture of it which is preserved being now hardly
recognizable. To the east the ground rises steeply
towards the parish church, and at the foot of the
slope is the bed of the intermittent ' bourne,' which
supplied the monastic buildings. The boundary
wall of the garden on the north it in part old, and
may be part of the mediaeval precinct wall, the
stream being carried under it through a low arch.
In a summer-house are prcservad some very pretty
piece* of 13th-century detail, doubtless from the
monastic church, and a green glazed tile with raised
patterns, also of the 1 3th century, has been dug up
on the site of the church.
The church of ST. PETER AND
CHURCH ST. PAUL has a chancel 3 1 ft. 3 in. by
igft., a nave 58ft. Sin. by 19 ft. ;
north and south transept 2 1 ft. by 15 ft. ; a north
aisle 1 7 ft. 8 in. wide, a south aisle 8 ft. wide, a
western tower, north and south porches, an organ
chamber and a vestry. The church was largely
rebuilt in the first half of the 1 4th century, the
chancel being widened to its present lines, the chancel
arch inserted, the aisles and transepts added, and the
tower begun but perhaps not finished. In the ijth
century the clearstory and roof were added and a
number of windows inserted. About the middle of
the 1 6th century the tower was enlarged on the
south side, evidently to make more room for bells.
The lower part of the addition cont.iins a stair, and
it seems that the parish must have obtained the bells
of the suppressed abbey which stood close by on the
west. Of the four belfry lights three are of this
date, but the fourth, that to the west, is a mutilated
early 14th-century window which it is quite probable
formed part of the abbey buildings. The south
porch is a late addition. In recent years the north
aisle has been rebuilt and greatly widened, the old
material being re-used and the door and windows
reset, while a new north porch was added. The
organ chamber is also modern.
The east window of the chancel has in a 14th-
century opening modern tracery of 15th-century
detail in five cinquefoiled lights with tracery over.
Externally the window is almost entirely modern, but
the internal jambs and rear arch are rich 14th-century
work, elaborately moulded with deep hollows, double
wave moulds, and ogees in two orders. The inner
order rests on mask-corbels, the outer upon slender
circular shafts with richly carved foliate capitals, and
circular moulded bases upon octagonal plinths, while
some of the hollow members of the rear arch are en-
riched with carving in a running floral design and with
four-leaved flowers. On either side are two highly
decorated image niches of 14th-century date with
moulded and shafted jambs and internal heads carved
into ribbed vaulting, while traces remain of spire-like
canopies. At the east end of the south wall is a
series of modern canopied niches, seven in number
and of 14th-century detail, which are said to have
been designed from fragments uncovered at this point
during the last restoration. Below is the cinquefoiled
head of a single late 14th-century window, forming a
niche now used as a credence, and west of this is the
blocked opening of what was once a squint from a
vestry. The vestry door, a little west of the altar
rails, is of 14th-century date, but was much repaired
and reset a little west of its old position at the recent
restoration. The arched opening to the organ
chamber is quite modern. At the east end of the
south wall is a large 14th-century window, with
moulded jambs and rear arch and with an internal
label, now filled with 18th-century tracery in five
uncusped lights. There is also a very gracefully
designed 14th-century piscina with a sharp trefoiled
"« P.t. 4 Edw. VI, ft. iii 5 5 Kdw. VI,
pt. iii, m. ji.
"• Pat. 7 Edw. VI, pt. riii.
»« G.E.C. Ctmflete Peerage.
"» Pat. 2 Eli*, pt. XT.
111 Pat. 1 6 Eliz pt. i, m. 5 ; Chan.
Inq. p.m. (Scr. 2), ccmviii, 69.
35'
Ibid.j Pat. 10 Jai. I, pt. T, no. 7.
Chan. Inq.
99 | ibid, cccczci,
"• Chan. Inq. p.m. (Scr. 2), ccccbdv,
ci, 88.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
head with curiously slight cusping and a cinquefoiled
ogee sub-head. The sill of the window before-
mentioned is carried down to form sedilia, the backs
of which had slightly sunk panels with sub-cusped
cinquefoiled heads, now much defaced. In the western
jamb is a small filled-in niche. West of the sedilia
is a small priest's door also of 14th-century date, richly
moulded on both faces and now blocked. There are
two further 14th-century windows with tracery, some-
what restored, in two trefoiled lights with trefoils and
a quatrefoil over. The jambs and rear arches are
continuously moulded and there are both internal and
external labels. Below the westernmost of these
windows is a low window of the same date with a
moulded rear arch and two trefoiled lights, the heads
of which are modern or of very late insertion, and
through its west jamb is pierced a squint from the
south transept. The chancel arch is of similar detail
to the nave arcades, the capitals ranging, but the arch
itself is higher and of steeper pitch and has perhaps
been rebuilt and widened in the 1 5th century, when
the rood-stair was inserted. It is of two plain
chamfered orders, and the responds have engaged
quarter and half-round shafts with square fillets
between and moulded circular capitals and bases. In
its original state the chancel must have been a
splendid example of the style of its time, and even in
its defaced and ' restored ' condition is extremely
interesting.
The nave arcades, as already stated, are similar in
design to the chancel arch, but have labels with
grotesque dripstones, and the chamfer on the outer
order of the arches is carefully stopped, while the details
of the capitals and bases are slightly different. In the
two eastern responds are the rood-loft doors, and there
is a clearstory with five windows on each side, each
of two trefoiled lights with trefoils in the spandrels.
They are of early 15th-century date and have
moulded internal jambs and rear arches with a square
main head. The roof is of the same date, of flat
pitch with six deep moulded principals and a
moulded ridge, purlins, and wall plates. Beneath the
principals are brackets, with cusped tracery in the
spandrels, resting upon corbels in the form of angels
holding shields. The tower arch is rather low and
of three chamfered orders, the two innermost dying
into the jambs and the outer being continuous.
The north transept has a three-light north win-
dow of early 15th-century date of three trefoiled
lights, the middle one slightly higher than the side
lights and sub-cusped, while the main head is square
with trefoils in the spandrels. In the middle of the
east wall is a 14th-century window of cinquefoiled
lights with flamboyant tracery over and double
wave-moulded jambs and rear arch now opening to
the organ chamber. North of this is a wide niche
or recess with a slightly ogee-shaped head. The
back has been elaborately painted to represent
hangings of crimson brocade worked in a flowing
floral design. In this niche is a fragment carved
with a shield bearing three bulls passant, two and one.
There is a smaller niche to the south of the window,
and below it a plain pointed piscina with a modern
drain. At the south end of the wall is a low door,
largely if not entirely modern, opening into the organ
chamber ; it replaces the lower door of the rood-
stairs, the upper door of which, with a portion of the
curved wall of the turret, is still visible.
On the west are two bays of arcading opening to
the widened south aisle, one arch of which, with one
respond and the pier, are modern and of 14th-century
detail. The roof is modern.
The north wall of the north aisle is quite modern
and has two reset three-light 15th-century windows.
Between these is the reset 14th-century north door
with wave-moulded jambs and two-centred head.
Internally and a little to the east of it a plain holy-
water stone has been inserted in the wall. The
porch is quite modern and of 14th-century detail
with a small two-light window on either side.
The south transept has a three-light window of
early 15th-century date at the north end of its
east wall with a four-centred main head and a double
wave-moulded rear arch, the same mouldings occur-
ring in two uncusped image niches, on either side
of this window. South of these is a two-light 14th-
century window similar in detail to but much smaller
than the two windows at the west end of the south
wall of the chancel. In the south wall is a small
door either modern or completely restored and in
the centre of the wall an early 15th-century window
of three cinquefoiled lights. On the west is a single
light of late 14th-century date, and a plain arch of
two chamfered orders without responds opens to
the south aisle.
The windows of the south aisle are identical with
those on the north and the south door is opposite the
north door and is similar in detail. At the west end
of the aisle is the door to the added tower stair and
just west of the south door is a small niche with a
cinquefoiled head. The south porch, a late addition,
appears originally to have been of two stories. The
floor, however, has been removed, though a dormer
window remains.
The tower is of three stages with an embattled
parapet. The west door of 14th-century date is
continuously moulded with double sunk chamfers and
hollow moulds, but has been much restored. Above
this the head and parts of the jambs of a late 15th-
century window have been inserted, probably at a
late date. The north, south, and east belfry openings
are of two lights under a square label, but the west
opening is filled with part of a fine early 14th-cen-
tury window of three cinquefoiled lights, and enough
remains to suggest elaborate tracery, though it has
been cut off square a little above the lower heads.
Internally the jambs are shafted, with rich floral
capitals and circular bases, and there is an internal
label.
The font is of the type so common in this
neighbourhood, the finest example of which is perhaps
that at Aylesbuiy. It is of late 12th-century date
and has an octagonal bowl on a short circular moulded
stem worked into a square base shaped like an inverted
cushion capital. The seats, &c. are modern, but
some old carved tracery has been worked in. In the
south transept are the remains of several brasses, the
only figure remaining being that of a woman of
c. 1510 There is also a beautifully designed helm
and mantling, part of a 15th-century achievement of
arms, with the crest of a maidenhead. Below is an
inscription in Roman lettering to Zacheus Metcalfe
1595, and Margaret Metcalfe 1596. There is also
the inscription of a brass to John Iwardby and his
wife Katherine the daughter of Bernard de MU-
senden ; she died 1436, but the date of his death is
352
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
left blank. The brass was evidently in the Abbey
Church. In the south aisle is a monument to William
liois, 1631. It has a broken pediment surmounted
by a figure of Time with his scythe over an arch
fantastically constructed of books. In the north
aisle is a monument to Dame Jane Walker, 1635,
some time the wife of Daniel Bonde of London and
later of Sir John Boys of Canterbury.
The tower contains a sanctus in a small opening,
dated 1 78 2, and six bells: the treble dated 1692 ; the
second cast by Joseph Carter in 1603, and bearing his
mark ; the third dated 1640; the fourth cast by
Thomas Mean in 1824 ; the fifth by Ellis Knight
in 1623 ; and the sixth by Thomas Mean in 1840.
The plate is modern and consists of two chalices, a
flagon, two standing patens, and a perforated spoon.
The first book of the registers contains all entries
from 1694, baptisms and burials running to 1782
and marriages to 1753. A second book contains
burial in woollen with notes of the affidavits from
1678 to 1784 and a further continuation of burials to
1812. The third book contains baptisms from 1783
to 1809, and a fourth the same from 1809 to 1812,
and there is the first banns book of marriages from
175410 1786.
The patronage of the church of
JDyOWSON St. Peter and St. Paul at Great Mis-
senden belonged to the lord of that
manor until it was given with its tithes by William de
Missenden to the abbey, which he founded there in
1 133."* The living was appropriated by the monas-
tery, a vicar being appointed by the abbot.110
At the Dissolution the advowson fell to the Crown,
and the vicarage was granted to Thomas Barnerdes,
one of the former monks, in lieu of a pension."1 The
right of presentation was kept by the Crown until
about 1607, soon after which it seems to have been
granted to John Ramsey, Viscount Haddington, for in
1609 he sold it, together with the rectory, to William
Fleetwood."* The advowson and rectory then be-
came united, and have since followed the same descent,
until the death of John Oldham Oklh.im in 1822,
since when the advowson has been in the hands of his
trustees.1*1
The rectory of Great Missenden, which came into
the king's hands at the Dissolution, was in 1541
granted to Richard Greenway, a gentleman usher of
the Household, for a term of twenty-one years."4 In
i 560 the reversion of the rectory at the end of that
term was granted to Richard Hampden, principal
clerk of the king's kitchen, for thirty years, and fell to
him late in 1561."* He, however, surrendered it
about 1578, when it was granted for life to Griffin
Hampden, and after his death to his daughters, Mary
and Ruth, for their lives.1" Mary, who subsequently
married James Russell, and her sister were both living
in 1597,'" but evidently died before 1606, for in
that year the rectory, which would revert to the
Crown at their death, was granted to John Ramsey,
GREAT MISSENDEN
Viscount Haddington.1* The latter sold it in 1609
to William Fleetwood,"* who died seised of it in
1 63 1,1" and in whose family it descended in the
same manner as Missenden Priory and Great Missen-
den Manor,131 in which it has presumably become
merged.
There are Baptist chapels at Great Missenden,
Lee Common, and at Hyde Heath, and a Primitive
Methodist chapel at Lee Common.
In 1629 Nicholas Almond by deed
CHARITIES conveyed to trustees his messuage in
Thame — now a house and shop, 2 Corn
Market, let at £i 6 a year — upon trust for the poor,
subject to the payment of 6/. 8V. for a sermon on the
Wednesday in Easter week.
The charity is regulated by a scheme of 20 April
1 865, but the income has been absorbed in recent
years in repairs of the property.
The charity of Dame Jane Boys, John Hampden,
and another, founded in 163;, consists of a house and
4 acres at Prestwood, and allotment land, producing
yearly £20 lit. \oJ. By an order of the Charity
Commissioners of 9 June 1896, made under the
Local Government Act, g'jth part of the net yearly
income was apportioned as the ecclesiastical branch.
In 1907 there was after repair and removal of the
monument of the foundress a balance in the hands of
the churchwardens of £2 l<)i. The net income of
the remainder of the charity was, under the title of the
Borough Charity, applied in apprenticeship premiums
and outfits.
In 1 690 Thomas Gregory, by will proved in the
P.C.C. 29 March, gave £5 a year for poor house-
keepers not in receipt of parish relief. The annuity
is paid by the owner of Knives Farm, Hughenden.
The operation of the charity was in abeyance, and in
1 906 there was a balance in hand of £2 1 1 8*. 6J.
In 1864 William Dent by deed gave a sum of
£l,ooo consols fur educational purposes, the dividends
of which are duly applied.
In 1888 Miss Jane Douglas, by will proved at
London 23 August, bequeathed to the vicar and
churchwardens a legacy, now represented by
£327 I 5/. 2</. consols, with the official trustees, the
income to be distributed on 1 3 November in each
year among forty aged poor persons. The annual
dividend, amounting to £8 31. 8</., is applied in
charity tickets.
In 1881 Abraham Watson, by will proved with a
codicil at London on 9 May, bequeathed .£800
consols, the income, now amounting to £20 a year,
to be applied towards the support of the infant
schools.
The same testator bequeathed to the vicar and
churchwardens of Great Missenden .£180 consols, the
income now amounting to £4. loi. annually to be
distributed twice each year among the poor of the
hamlet.
The sums of stock are held by the official trustees.
»• Dugdale, Mm. »i, ;48 ; Harl. 3688.
,' "• y»ltr Eicl. (Rec. Com.), ir, 147.
>» L. *»J P. Hn. yill, xir (i), 161.
U* Feet of F. Buck*. Bait. 7 Jai. I.
«• CItrical Guidt ; Clrrg, Lut.
>" L. 1*4 P. Hen. ytll, «i, 716 1
Pat. 10 Elix. pt. ri, m. 16.
m Pat. 10 Elic. pt. ri, m. 16.
1* Ibid.
"7 Feet of F. Buck*. Mich. ^ Eliz.
111 Pat. 4 Jai. I, pt. Tiii.
'« Feet of F. Buck*. Eait. 7 Jai. I.
140 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. i), ccccliir,
99-
UI Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccccxci,
88; Recor. R. Ducki. Mich. 1655, rot.
10 1 ; Init. Bki. (P.R.O.) ; Recov. R.
Bucki. Eait. I Jai. II, rot. 191 ; ibid.
Mich. 10 Anne, rot. c.8 | Feet of F. Eaal.
J Ceo. Ill } ibid. Trin. 13 Ceo. III.
353
45
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
LITTLE MISSENDEN
Missedene, Messedena (xi cent.) ; Musindone.
The parish of Little Missenden has an area of 3,214
acres. It is fairly open country, and lies for the most
part at an altitude of over 500 ft. above the Ordnance
datum, except where it is crossed by the valley of the
Misbourne in the north, where the level sinks to
between 300 ft. and 400 ft. 1,641 J acres of the
parish are arable land, 8 53 J acres permanent grass,
and 340^ acres wood.1 The main road from London
to Wendover passes through the north of the parish,
and the village of Little Missenden is situated on a
road which branches off and runs parallel to the main
road for some distance before rejoining it. The
church of St. John stands on the outskirts of the
village, on the road from Wendover to Amersham, to
the north of which there is a thick plantation.
Three roads turn south from the village, leading to
Beamond End and Holmer Green. In the north-
west a road turns westward from the main road, and
leads to Little Kingshill, with branch roads south to
Holmer Green. The village consists of a few sniall
houses of the 1 8th century, of brick and rough-cast,
and some cottages. Of late a number of week-end
cottages have been erected in the parish. The manor
house has some remains of I yth-century work, but
was modernized in the early part of the igth century
and later. The house called ' Little Missenden
Abbey,' the residence of Mr. E. Callard, possibly in-
corporates the remains of an old house. It is the
property of the trustees of Mr. Seth Smith.
The hamlet of Little Kingshill lies on the western
boundary of the parish, and the village of Holmer
Green in the south, with Beamond End about J a
mile to the east, and Spurlands End about the same
distance to the west. Bray's Green and Mantle's
Farm and Wood, with the supposed site of a castle,
lie in the north-east of the parish.
The subsoil is chalk, and the surface soil clay and
chalk. The Metropolitan Extension Railway passes
through the north-west of the parish, but there is no
station, the nearest being Great Missenden, 2^ miles
distant.
The Inclosure Award was made in 1854, and is in
the custody of the Clerk of the Peace.'
The manor or reputed manor of
MANORS HOLMER (Halmere, Holemere, xiii
cent.) appears to have been identical
with the hide held in Missenden before the Conquest
by Alwin, a man of Syred, son of Sybi. In 1086 it
formed part of the lands of the Count of Mortain,
the Conqueror's half-brother.' It was held of him by
Wigot, of whom nothing is known. The sub-tenancy
seems to have died out. Robert Count of Mortain
died between 1088 and 1097,* his lands passing to
his son William, who, however, was taken prisoner by
Henry I at the battle of Tinchebrai in 1106, and all
his honours forfeited.6 His lands thus came into the
possession of the Crown, and were ultimately granted
by the Empress Maud or by King Stephen in
1141 to Reginald Earl of Cornwall, natural son of
LITTLE MISSENDEN CHURCH FROM THE SOUTH-EAST
1 Inf. supplied by Ed. ofAgric. (1905).
a Com, Inct. Awards, 12.
• V.C.H. Bucks, i, 2433.
* G.E.C. Complete Peerage, ii, 360.
354
* Ibid. ; A. S. Ellis, Dam. Tenants of
Glouc.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
LITTLE MISSENDEN
Henry I,* at whose death in 1175 they reverted to
the Crown.' Holmer perhaps followed this descent,
but, if so, unlike the rest of the estates, which were
reserved for the use of Prince John,' it appears to
have been granted to Gilbert Basset, son of Thoma-
Rasset of Compton,' for he and Egelina his wife
appear as owners of property in Little Missenden in
i i8a." Gilbert's granddaughter Idonea, daughter of
Eustachia Basset and Richard de Camvill, married
William Longespee, Earl of Salisbury." who was lord
of the manor of Holmer in 1236." He was succeeded
in 1250" by his son William, whose daughter and
heir Margaret married Henry de Lacy, Earl of Lin-
coln," lord of Holmer in right of his wife in 1284."
Hen y de Lacy died in 1 3 1 1 in possession of the manor,
leaving an only daughter Alice, who married first
Thomas Earl of Lancaster." holder of the manor in
1 3 1 6," and, secondly, Eubold Lcstrange, who settled
Holmer upon his wife and himself in 1326." Eubold
died without issue in 1335 "(his holding at that
time not being called a manor), his wife Alice surviv-
ing until 1 348." In 1339, however, Roger Lestrange,
kinsman and heir of Eubold,
granted the reversion of the
manor, after the death of
Alice and her tenant Robert
le Warde, to the convent of
Burnham, to hold in frank-
almoign." Holmer continued
in the possession of Burnham
Abbey until the Dissolution
in 1539, when it fell into the
king's hands, and was annexed
to the honour of Windsor
Castle." The tenant at that
time was Giles Mower, to
whom a lease of the manor was confirmed by the
king for twenty-one years,*1 to expire in 1560."
In 1557 a second lease of twenty-one years, from
1560, was granted to David and Sybil Penn,**
holders of the manor of Beamond, and in 1573 a
third lease for the same term, from the expiration
of Penn's lease in 1581, was granted to Reuben
Sherwood." Thus Sherwood's term would not expire
until 1 602 ; however, in 15868 further lease of
twenty-one years from the end of Sherwood's term
was granted to George Lee," and again in 1590
for a similar period to Druce Payne at the end of
George Lee's term," which would expire in 1623.
Druce Payne, however, had hardly gained possession
of it when in 1624 the manor with appurtenances
was given by James I to Edward and Robert Ramsey **
000
BURNHAM ABBEY. Or
* chief argem with thru
lonenget gulti therein.
in fee-farm, at the request of John Ramsey, Earl of
Holderness. The actual lite of the manor was at
this time in possession of John Honor, who died in
163*.** Holmer was, however, acquired by Thomas
Style about 1625," probably by purchase from the
Ramseys. He died about 1639, and his successor
William Style, in 1640, leaving it entailed successively
on his brothers Francis and Robert and his sisten."
Francis held it until 1646 ; in 1653 and 1661 it was
held by William and Elizabeth Standen, guardians of
Elizabeth's daughters Mary and Elizabeth Style."
Elizabeth Standen was probably the widow of Francis
Style (see brass in church). The daughter Elizabeth
afterwards married Edward Hoby, and Mary became
the wife of Henry Sayer." Robert Style w.is holding
it as their guardian in 1664 and 1669," after which
he held it himself as late as 1688. Some time before
1694 it was acquired by Henry Harris, who was still
holding it in 1705, and whose widow Margaret was
lady of the manor in 1 709. In that year she sold
it to Edmund Lambe,** who
seems to have died in 1737.
In 1738 Holmer was held by
John Davis in right of his
wife Sarah, which implies that
she was the daughter and
heir of Edmund Lambe. In
1757 he sold the manor to
Nathaniel Collyer, who must
have immediately conveyed it
to James Mallors." The lat-
ter seems to have died in
I 766 leaving his son a minor,
for in 1767 and 1768 the
manorial courts were held by
Benjamin Rosewell and Francis
Mallors, James Mallors the
younger appearing in 1770.
About 1771 Holmer was acquired by Assheton
Curzon," in whose family it has since descended."
Earl Howe is the present owner.
The lords of Holmer had view of frankpledge
'without the sheriff' from the beginning of the 1 3th
century." Courts are mentioned as pertaining to
Holmcr in 1557, when they were reserved by the
king " until granted to Robert and Edward Ramsey
with the manor in 1624. View of frankpledge and
court baron still pertain to it.
BE4MOND Manor was probably part of the
Mortain lands in Little Missenden, as it seems to
have been given by Gilbert Basset to the monastery
of Biccster, together with the church of Little Mis-
CunzoN-HowK, Earl
Howe. Or a fiut te-
rwcen three viol-vet* kradi
cut off table, for HOWE ;
quartered with argent a
trend table with three
farrott or having collars
gules thereon, for CL-RZON.
• G.E.C Comflete Peerage, ii, 361.
" Ibid. ; Clutterbuck, Hut. of Hern, ii,
*9J-
• Ibid.
• HarL 1411, fol. 63.
10 Dugdale, Mom. vi, 434.
» Harl. 141 1, fol. 63.
11 Col. Pal. 1131-47, p. 147.
« G.E.C. Comflcte Peerage ; Hot. Hand.
(Rec. Com.), i, zo.
M G.E.C Comflete Peerage.
'• Feud, Aids, i, 85.
"Chin. Inq. p.m. 4 Edw. II, no.
S>-
» Feud. Aids, i, ill.
u Col. Pat. i 314-7, p. 156.
" Chin. Inq. p.m. 9 Edw. Ill (lit not.),
no. 41.
" G.E.C. Comfleti Peerage.
11 Cat. Close, 1339-41, p. 107; Cal.
Pat. 1345-8, p. 151 ; t'eud. Aidt, i,
114.
" L. and P. Hen. fill, XT, 498 (35).
» Ibid. 561.
M Pat. 1 5 Eliz. pt. T, m. 40.
"Ibid.
» Ibid.
*" Ibid. 18 Eliz. pt. vi, m. 12.
" Ibid. 31 Eliz. pt. i«, m. 13.
M Ibid. 11 Jat. I, pt. viii, no. 1 1 ; Cal.
S.P. Dem. 1613-;, p. 316; Chan. Inq.
p.m. 8 Chat. I, pt. i, m. 1.
"> Ibid. Mite, dzxvii, 7 ; £>ch. Dtp. II
Chat. I, E. 3.
" CL R. in pot*, of the tteward of the
manor.
" Ibid. ; Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2),
ccccxcvii, 71.
355
* Ct. R. in pott, of the tteward of the
manor.
" Feet of F. Buckt. Hit zo it 21
Chai. II.
" Ibid.
M Ct. R. in pott, of the tteward of
the manor; Feet of F. Buckt. Mich.
8 Anne.
" Feet of F. Bucki. Trin. 30 & 31
Geo. II ; Ct. R. in pot*, of the iteward
of the manor.
» Ibid.
" Recov. R. Buckt. Trin. 45 Geo. Ill,
rot. 156} ibid. Eatt. I Geo. IV, rot.
304.
« Rot. Hand. (Rec. Com.), i, 10.
41 Pat. 15 Eliz. pt. T, in. 40 ; ibid. 18
Eliz.pl. »i, m. II ; ibid, 12 Jat. I, pt. viii,
no. II.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
senden, in 1182 ;4' it is found in the possession of
that abbey in 1330-2," and remained so until the
dissolution of that house in 1536.
In 1541 Beamond was granted by Henry VIII to
Sybil the wife of David Penn ' in consideration of
her services in the nurture and education of Prince
Edward,' ** and was confirmed to her and her hus-
band in 1553." David Penn died about 1565, and
was succeeded by his son John, whose lands passed to
his son William in i$<)6.4e William's son John in-
herited the manor in January 1638-9," and died in
1641, when he was succeeded by William Penn,48
whose son William died in 1693. Roger Penn
became lord of Beamond upon his death,49 and died
unmarried in I73I,50 when the manor passed to Sarah
Penn the wife of Sir Nathaniel Curzon of Kedleston,51
in whose family it descended. Assheton Curzon,
second son of the fourth baronet, inherited this manor,
was created Baron Curzon of Penn in 1794 and
Viscount Curzon in 1802. His grandson was created
Earl Howe in 1821. The present Earl Howe is now
lord of the manor.
The lords of the manor have possessed court leet
and view of frankpledge from the 1 4th century,"
which still survive. Free fishery is mentioned in
1618."
The reputed manor of M4NTELLS (Mauntel-
court, Mauntelesse xv cent., Maundeles xvi cent.)
was held in the time of Edward the Confessor
by Seric, a man of Sired, and in 1086 by Turstin
Mantel,54 and was assessed at half a hide. It was
held of the king in chief by serjeanty of being the
king's naperer." In 1486 it is said to have been
held by the service of -^ of a knight's fee,5* and in
the time of Elizabeth and Charles I by grand
serjeanty.67
The half-hide remained in the family of Mantell,
and in the 1 2th century was held by Robert Mantell,
whose son and heir was a minor in custody of the
king in li85.M This boy, who was ten at that time,
was probably the Walter Mantell who held it be-
tween 1201 and I2I2,59 when it was called a hide.
He was succeeded by William Mantell, probably his
son, who died in 1249 leaving a son Robert,60 at
which time it was described as a messuage, lands, and
rent. He was followed by another Robert, who was
living in 1284, and seems to have died shortly before
1291, when his lands were in the king's custody by
LITTLE MISSENDEN : 1 HE MANOR HOUSE FROM THE CHURCHYARD
* Dugdale, Mm. vi, 434.
48 Ct. R. ptfo. i 55, no. 2 ; Valor Eccl.
(Rcc. Com.), ii, 189.
44 L. and P. Hen. Vlll, xvi, 718.
45 Ibid, xiii (2), 1257 n.; Acts of P.O.
1552-4, p. 252 ; Pat. 7 Edw. VI, pt. iv ;
Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), cxli, 47.
<6 Ibid, ccxlviii, 31.
4~ Ibid, ccccxciv, 63 ; Lipscomb, Hist,
of Bucks, iii, 291, quoting monumental
inscription.
48 Recev R. Bucks. Mich. 1649, rot.
51; ibid. Trin. 2 Jas. II, rot. 72 ; Lip»-
comh, Hist, of Bucks, iii, 290, quoting
monumental inscription.
49 Recov. R. Trin. 10 Will. Ill, rot. 94.
60 Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, iii, 292,
quoting monumental inscription.
61 Ibid. 289 ; Recov. R. Bucks. Trin.
27 Geo. Ill, rot. 123 ; ibid. Trin. 45
Geo. Ill, rot. 256; ibid. East. I Geo. IV,
rot. 304.
62 Ct. R. ptfo. 155, no. 2 ; Chan. Inq.
p.m. (Ser. 2), cxli, 47 ; Pat. 16 Jas. I,
pt. vii. " Ibid.
44 y.C.H. Bucks. \, 267,1.
45 Red Bk. Exch. (Rolls Ser.), i, 139;
356
Testa de Ne-vill (Rec. Com.), 256 ; Chan.
Inq. p.m. Hen. Ill, file viii, no. 19 ; ibid.
2 Hen. VI, no. 13.
4« Cal. Inq. Hen. VII, 149.
47 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), cxx, 2 ;
ibid, ccccxxxiv, 93.
68 Rot. de Dominabus, &c. 20, S.
Grimaldi.
"Red Bk. Exch. (Rolls Ser.), i, 139;
Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 245 and
256.
60 Chan. Inq. p.m. Hen. VIII, file viii,
no. 19 ; Rot. Hund. (Rec. Com.), i, 20 ;
Feud, Aids, i, 85.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED LrrrLE MISSENDEN
reason of the minority of his heir," and were farmed
for 35/. \\J. This heir would probably be the
Robert Mantell who in 1336 enfeoffed his son Walter
of the manor," so called for the first time. Walter
died in 1356, and was succeeded by his son John,"
whose son John Mantell of Hartwell inherited the
manor in 1424.** Some time after, perhaps at the
death of the last-mentioned John, the manor seems
to have come into the possession of John Hampden,
whose son Thomas died seised of it in 1485, leaving
a son Richard." Richard Hampden apparently
conveyed it to trustees,64 from whom it was presum-
ably purchased by Thomas Woodmancy, who died
possessed of it in 1505." He left a widow Anne,
who seems to have married secondly Robert Girton,
and two sons, Thomas and John, who together with
their mother conveyed Mantells in 1520-1 to Simon
Watson." The manor remained in the Watson family
until 1554, when Kenelm Watson sold it to Thomas
Denton of Hillesdon.** Thomas Denton died seised of
it in 1558, and was succeeded by his son Alexander,70
after whose death about 1574" Mantells seems to
have been sold to Richard Tothill, for he died in
possession of it in 1593." His son William died in
1626 leaving as his heirs a daughter Katharine Tot-
hill and a grandson William Drake, son of his daughter
Joan," between whom the manor was divided. In
1632, however, Katharine conveyed her moiety to
William Drake 74 of Shardeloes and Amersham, in
whose family it has descended, and is now possessed
by Mr. Tyrwhitt Drake of Amersham. Mantle's Farm
and Wood still exist.
In 1254-5 Robert Mantell paid hidage of dd.
yearly and nothing for suit."
A half-hide in LITTLE MISSENDEN was held
in the time of Edward the Confessor by Wulfwig,
Bishop of Dorchester, but did not, however, remain to
that see, for in 1086 it formed part of the lands of
Hugh de Bolebec.'* Hugh de Bolebec was succeeded
by his two sons, Hugh who died without issue, and
Walter " who was lord of the Little Missenden half-
hide in 1 1 66." The latter died before 1185, leav-
ing an only daughter and heir Isabel, who in that
year was a minor in the custody of Earl Albric.7*
She married Robert de Vere, third Earl of Oxford,
and the Bolebec estates thus became merged in his
earldom. The overlordship of this half-hide con-
tinued in the possession of the Earls of Oxford as
late as 1634."° It was held from the I 3th century
onwards as half a fee.
The sub-tenant of the Little Missenden half-hide
previous to the Conquest was Ulviet, who was still
holding it in 1086 of Hugh de Bolebec." Nothing
is known of his descendants. In 1 1 66 it was held
by Raveingus de ' Musindone,' ** after which there is
no record of a sub-tenant until 1254-5, when the
holder was William de Sumeford." At this time por-
tions of it were also held by Hugh de Messenden,
perhaps a descendant of Raveingus, and William de
BOLIBIC. Vert a lion
ermini.
VERE. Quarterly gulet
and or with a molet ar-
gent in the quarter.
Derneford or Demeford,84 which suggests that they
were perhaps husbands of three sisters, between whom
the half-hide had been divided ; William de Sume-
ford assuming the lordship as husband of the eldest.
Hugh de Messenden was still living in 1 262,** and
for some time previous to 1275 Lawrence de Brok
held a half-virgate in Little Missenden of William de
Derneford,9* so that William de Sumeford seems to
have died without heirs. In 1275 Lawrence died,
and was succeeded by his ion Hugh de Brok." In
1284-6 the half-hide was held by Hugh de Brok
and Henry de Bray," which implies that Hugh de
Brok had obtained the portion of William de Derne-
ford, and that Henry de Bray had succeeded Hugh de
Messenden. If this Henry was Henry de Bray the
King's Escheator he fell into disgrace and probably
forfeited his lands about izSg.93 Hugh de Brok
seems to have had heirs,90 but apparently they did not
succeed to Little Missenden, for shortly afterwards it
appears in the possession of Joan le Botiller." This
lady was one of the sisters and heirs of Richard Fitz
John who died in 1297,"' her husband being Theo-
bald le Botiller. As neither Richard Fitz John nor
Joan herself were seised of Little Missenden when
they died, * she can only have held the estate for a
while.
In 1371 Little Missenden was held by Peter de
Brewcs," who received grants of lands in Bucking-
hamshire from Edward III." He had a son John
who died without issue in 1426 or 1427, and a
daughter Beatrice who married Sir Hugh Shirley.**
After Peter de Brewes there is no further record of
tub-tenants in this portion of Little Missenden. It
seems probable that this fee became absorbed in
one of the other manors of the parish, and thus
disappeared.
In 1254-5 William de Sumeford paid hidage of
11 Exch. Accti. bdle. I, no. 16.
•' Abhrev. Rot. Orig. (Rec. Com.), ii, 107 ;
Cat. Pat. 1334-8) p. 228.
« Chan. Inq. p.m. 47 Edw. Ill (lit
not.), no. 24.
•» Ibid, i Hen. VI, no. 1 3.
•• Col. Inj. Hen. VII, 149.
** Pit. 15 Hen. VII, pt. ii, m. 5.
•" Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), xx, 6.
" FeetofF. Buck.. Ea.t. 12 Hen. VIII.
•• Com. Pleat D. Enr. Trin. i Mary,
m. tit.
7° Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. i), cix, 1.
"' Liptcomb, Hilt, of Butki. iii, 171
Chan. Inq. p.m. (Scr. 2), clxxvi, 4.
38
7* Ibid, ccxl, iS.
" Ibid, ccccxxxir, 93.
» Feet of F. Dir. Co. Ea.t. 8 Chat I.
'• Rot. HuitJ. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
1 Y.C.H. Butki. i, 264*.
~ Bankt, Dorm, and Ext. Peeraget, I,
1 Red Bk. Exck. (Roll. Ser.), i, 316-
"' S. Grimaldi, Rot. di Dtminahui, lie.
*° Teita de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 24 5 4
and 247* ; Feud. Aidi, i, 85 ; Chan. Inq.
p.m. 4; Edw. Ill, no. 45 ; ibid. (Ser. 2),
cccclxiiii, 15.
« f.CJi. Butki. i, 2644.
357
** Red Bk. Exeb. (Roll« Ser.), i, 317.
* Rot. Hund. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
« Ibid.
•» Ai.iie R. 57, m. 6d.
M Chan. Inq. p.m. 3 Edw. I, no. 10.
1 Ibid. » Fiud. Aidi, i, gj.
« Red. Bk. Bxtb. (Rolla Ser.), iii,
cccixrii.
" Wrottetlejr, Fed. from Plea R. 428.
" Teita de Ntvill (Rec. Com.), 247*.
n Chan. Inq. p.m. 2; Edw. I, no. 50.
* Ibid. 31 Edw. I, no. 32.
" Ibid. 45 Edw. Ill, no. 4J.
"Add. MS. 5524,foU 17*.
«• Ibid.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
£l a year. Hugh de Messenden and Walter de
Derneford, his fellow-owners, paid nothing for suit.9'
JFFRICK'S F4RM or Manor (Auffrykkes, xvi
cent.) was at an early date given to Godstow
Nunnery, for it appears to have belonged to that
house in 1 29 1,98 and to have remained in its possession
until its dissolution.99 In 1541 it was granted by
Henry VIII to Sybil Penn together with the manor
of Beamond,100 and followed the same descent.101
Affrick's Farm still exists.
The church of ST. JOHN THE
CHURCH BAPTIST consists of a chancel 17 ft. by
1 2 ft. 10 in., a nave 366. 2 in. by 1 6 ft.
gin., a north chapel 25 ft. loin, by 12 ft. 8 in., a
north aisle 7 ft. 4 in. wide, a south aisle 1 2 ft. 7 in.
wide with a south porch, and a western tower 1 1 ft.
i in. square, all measurements being internal. It is
one of the oldest buildings in the district, the nave
and perhaps the chancel dating from the beginning of
the 1 2th century. In the second half of the 1 2th
century a south aisle was added, and late in the same
century a north aisle. About the same time clear-
story windows were inserted in the south wall and
PLAN OF LITTLE
Scale of feet'
MISSENDEN CHURCH
perhaps in the north. The chancel shows no features
earlier than the 1 3th century, but its plan and perhaps
its walls are of the same date as the nave walls ; it was
at any rate remodelled in the I3th century, while a
north chapel, probably much shorter from east to west
than at present, was added to it in the 1 4th century.
The tower is an addition of fairly late 15th-century
date, at which time the north aisle was reconstructed,
and in the i8th century the south aisle was re-
built. In modern times little has been done beyond
the most ordinary repairs, but whitewash and plaster
have been most liberally used, the latter covering even
the tooled stonework in several layers. For this
reason some points in the early history of the church
must remain uncertain ; the length of the old south
aisle, the number of clearstory windows, and the date
of the eastern bay of the south arcade can only be
decided by removing some at least of the accumulated
whitewash and plaster.
The east window of the chancel is of three uncusped
lights with shafted jambs and rear arches supported
upon circular shafts with moulded bases and capitals,
all of late 1 3th-century detail, but the window has
been so much restored as to be of doubtful date. On
the north is the 14th-century opening to the chapel
with a two-centred arch of two chamfered orders, the
outer of which is continuous. In the middle of the
south wall is a lancet window with a rounded
rear arch and a wide splay, c. 1200, and on either
side are later lancets, that on the east having a
late 13th-century moulded rear arch, while that to
the west is a single trefoiled light set lower in the
wall than the others. Its head appears to be a late
insertion. The chancel arch is low, of a single plain
order, semicircular, with a rough square abacus, but
has been so much cut about and smothered in plaster and
whitewash that its original details are not to be seen.
The north arcade of the nave is of three unequal bays.
The eastern bay has a small round-headed arch with
no eastern respond, and evidently of very late date,
cut through the wall in the i8th or igth century.
The two remaining bays have plain round-headed
arches and hollow-chamfered abaci
with a deep upper member, showing
that they belong to the end of the
1 2th century. A section of the old
nave wall some 7 ft. long is left be-
tween the arches, and the angles of
the jambs are worked with small
shafts or bowtels surmounted by
small foliate capitals. The south
arcade is of two bays, the eastern
being considerably the wider, having
been enlarged at a late date, probably
when the south aisle was rebuilt in
the 1 8th century. The second bay
remains untouched and is similar to
the two bays on the north except
that the jambs are plain and the
abacus is of earlier type. Above this
arch is a blocked round-headed clear-
story window, the 15th-century wall
plate cutting through its head, and
to the west at a lower level is one
of the original windows of the early
1 2th-century nave, a plain round-headed opening,
now blocked and covered with plaster and whitewash.
At the east end of the south wall is a dormer window
to light the pulpit. Between the two arches, on the
south face of the wall, is a low and shallow recess,
whose nature is not apparent under the plaster and
whitewash.
The north chapel has an 18th-century east win-
dow of three round-headed lights ; and a two-light
north window of 14th-century date with trefoiled
heads and a quatrefoil over, and a moulded rear
arch with an internal label. Beneath and to the
west is a mutilated tomb recess of the same date with
a low pointed arch. The arch from the chapel to
the north aisle is also of I4th century date, like that
to the chancel.
The north aisle has three 15th-century windows of
two cinquefoiled lights under a square head, one in
the west and two in the north wall, and between the
W Rot. Hund. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
98 Dugdale, Man. iv, 369.
99 Ibid. 373 and 377.
H" L. and P. Hen. Vlll, xvi, 718.
101 Ibid, xiii (2), 1257 n. ; Chan. Inq.
p.m. (Ser. 2), cxli, 47 ; ibid. (Ser. 2),
358
ccxlviii, 31 ; ibid. (Ser. 2), ccccxciv, 63 ;
Recov. R. Bucks. Trin. 2 Jas. II, rot. 72 ;
ibid. Trin. 10 Will. Ill, rot. 94.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
LITTLE MISSENDEN
latter is the north door of the same date with continu-
ously moulded jambs and four-centred head.
The south aisle is built of flint and brick and has
an east window of the same detail as that of the
chapel. In the south wall are two 18th-century
pointed windows with two-light wooden frames and
a doorway with a 1 5 th-ccntury moulded head reset
on plain chamfered jambs. Immediately west of this
is a small single 1 8th-century light placed rather high,
and a west window of two clumsy trefoiled lights is
of the same date. The south porch, mainly of brick,
incorporates the remains of a 1 5th-century wooden
porch, the outer archway and some carved detail being
preserved.
The tower, of three stages with an embattled para-
pet and a south-east turret staircase, is of 1 5 th-ccntury
date throughout. Its eastern arch is of two orders,
the outer, with a double ogee moulding, being contin-
uous, and separated by a wide hollow from the inner
order which springs from round shafts with octagonal
bases and capitals. The west door has a straight
sided four-centred head and moulded jambs the inner
members of which are carried round the arch, while the
outer form a square head. The west window is of
three cinquefoiled lights under a four-centred head.
The belfry openings are of two cinquefoiled lights
under a square head.
The font is of the local izth-century type, with a
fluted bowl and square base with inverted scallops,
enriched with foliage carving in the usual manner.
The wooden fittings of the church are of little
interest, but in the chancel are some 18th-century
altar rails and panelling, and a I yth-century altar
table.
The roofs of both nave and chancel are plain work
of early 15 th-ccntury date with moulded wall plates,
and ceiled on the underside of the rafters.
In the north chapel is an oak chest with elabo-
rately mitred panels bearing the date 1693 in nail
heads.
In the chancel is a brass with the figure of John
Style of Little Missenden, 1613, and a slab on which
were formerly the brass figures of Francis Style, 1646,
his wife Elizabeth (Penn), and two daughters ; the
inscription and a small part of the figures of the two
daughters are all that now remain. There is also a
slab to Sarah (Drury), 1679, the wife, first of John
Penn of Penn, and then of Robert Style.
The tower contains five bells : the treble cast by
John Warner and Sons in 1881 ; the second, inscribed
with the salutation, by a London founder of the 14th
century, John Rofforde ; the third has ' Sancta Mar-
gareta ora pro nobis,' and is the work of John
Danyell of London, c. 1460 ; the fourth was cast in
1603 by Joseph Carter of Whitechapel ; and the tenor
is by Henry Knight, 1663.
The plate consist! of a fine covered cup of the
puritan type, hall-marked for 1639 ; a flagon and
standing paten hall-marked respectively for 1729 and
1720 and both the gift of Mrs. Isabella Drake of
Shardeloes.
The first book of the registers contains all entries
between 1559 and 1718. The second book contains
all between 1719 and 1774 except in the case of the
marriages, which run to 1754- A third book contains
burials and baptisms between 1775 and 1812, while
marriages are continued in two printed books running
from 1754 to 1777 and from £777 to 1812. Burials
in woollen are contained in a separate book between
1711 and 1718 and there is a churchwardens' ac-
count book for the yean 1711-87.
The church of St. John the Bap-
ADrOWSON list at Little Missenden was grant-
ed by Gilbert Basset and Egelina his
wife to the monastery of Bicester in 1182,"" 'for
the good of his own soul, that of Egelina his wife and
those of his children,' and was confirmed to it in 1 3 1 5
by Edward II.1" The living wa> appropriated and
a perpetual vicar appointed,104 but the rectory and
advowson of the vicarage have always followed the
same descent. They remained in the possession of
Bicester Monastery until the Dissolution,'** after which
they were granted in 1541 to Sybil Penn,106 and
followed the descent of the manor of Beamond (q.v.)107
The present patron is Earl Howe.
Christ Church, Holmer Green, was erected in 1 894,
and is served from Holy Trinity, Penn Street, an
ecclesiastical parish formed in 1850 from part of the
civil parishes of Little Missenden and Penn.10*
There are Baptist chapels at Holmer Green, built
in 1877, and at Little Kingshill, built in 1814, and
a Wesleyan chapel.
— Brigginshaw, as mentioned in
CHARITIES a deed dated 10 May 1757, gave
a yearly sum of Id/, out of his estate
called Mill End for the poor. The annuity is now
paid by Mr. W. W. T. Drake of Shardeloes, Amer-
sham, and given in half-crowns to poor people.
In 1775 William Line, by will, charged his two
meadows, called Elders and Calves Close, and
an orchard adjoining at Little Kingshill with an
annuity of £4 61. %d. for providing weekly bread
for poor attending church and not receiving parish
relief.
The annuity is paid by Mr. Clark the owner of the
property charged, and distributed in bread to the
clerk and six of the poorest and oldest people every
Sunday.
In 1793 Sarah Bates by her will left a legacy,
now represented by £100 consols with the official
trustees, the income to be applied in providing
clothes, bedding, medical aid, &c., to the poor,
especially poor widows. The sum of £2 lot. it
usually given in money.
In 1867 Miss Charlotte Raine by her will, proved
on 20 May, bequeathed 2,000 shares in the Lambeth
Waterworks Company, also a further 2,000 shares in
the same company (subject to the life interest of a
niece, who died in 1 894), to the minister and church-
wardens, the income to be distributed half yearly
amongst the oldest and infirm poor (not exceeding ten
for each bequest), the recipients to be selected for
their respective lives, if considered deserving.
The trust funds are now represented by
£14,208 I5/. loJ. Metropolitan Water (u) Stock
3 per cent, with the official trustees, who also hold a
sum of £147 8/. loJ. consols, representing the invest-
ment of the proceeds of three letters of allotment in
respect of the said shares.
The annual income amounts to £429 19;. In
101 Dugdale, Man. ri, 434.
»" Cat. Pat. 1513-17, p. 359.
101 E^crion Chart. 412.
«• Vtltr Eal. (Ree. Com.), ii, 189.
«• L. ind P. lln. yiil, «vi, 718.
359
"7 In.t. Bki. P.R.O. Clirp Liu.
"* Land. Can. II Jin. 1850.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
1 907 annuities were given to twenty beneficiaries at a
cost of £431.
Charities founded by Miss Charlotte Raine by
deeds of 1875 and 1876 : —
(a) For the distribution of flannel ; trust fund
£157 Ijs. lid. consols, producing yearly £3 l8/. 8*/.
(b) For soup and wine, &c. ; trust fund, .£209 y.
consols, annual income £$ 4*. \d., and
(c) For repairs, &c., of church ; trust fund,
£166 I3/. 4<^. consols, annual income £4 3/. \d.
The several sums of stock are held by the official
trustees.
In 1880 James Henry Bird, by deed, dated
7 December, declared the trusts of two houses in
Paddington, being Nos. 1 08 and no Church Street,
let on lease for a term of 79 years from Michaelmas
1842, at a yearly rental of £l 9.
The same donor by his will, proved in 1884,
bequeathed a legacy represented by .£725 14*. 8</.
consols, with the official trustees. The annual rents
and dividends, amounting together to £36 5*. 8<^., to
be expended on the repair of a tablet in the church, or
maintaining the choir, bell-ringers, clerk, organist, for
sermons in commemoration of donor and his wife, and
in necessaries to the poor.
Educational Charities. — In 1849 Mrs. Penelope
Hunt, by her will, proved in the P.C.C. 9 June,
bequeathed £100 to the trustees of the National and
Parochial School as part of the general income.
Trust fund, £109 consols, with the official trustees,
produces yearly £2 14*. 4^.
Miss Lydia Bates' Charity. — In 1868 a sum of
£666 1 3J. 4^. consols, arising under the will of this
testatrix, was transferred to the official trustees, the
dividends to be applied as a permanent annual fund
for the education of boys and girls residing within the
parish. In 1898 the sum of £ij<) l$s. 6J. stock
was sold out to provide £200 towards the erection of
new schools, the dividends on the remainder of the
stock being accumulated to replace amount sold out.
The amount with the official trustees is now
£639 l"js. ()d. consols.
The Holmer Green School consists of schoolhouse
and land in hand, and an endowment of £395 ijs. ^d.
consols, with the official trustees, set aside in 1846.
This school is in course of being enlarged.
STOKE MANDEVILLE
Stoches, xi cent ; Stoke by Aylesbury, Stoke
Maundevile, xiv cent.
The parish of Stoke Mandeville lies in the Vale of
Aylesbury and now contains over 1,499 acres of land.
Until 1885 some land at Prestwood formed a detached
portion of the parish, but in that year it was attached
for civil purposes to Great and Little Hampden
parish.1 This estate, lying close to Great Hampden,
belonged from early times to the Hampdens, Alexander
de Hampden in the I3th century granting common
of pasture at Prestwood to the abbey of Missenden.1
It afterwards became famous as the particular piece of
land for which John Hampden refused to pay ship-
money. In 1863 a memorial was put up near Honor
End Farm, with the following inscription : — ' For
these lands in Stoke Mandeville John Hampden was
assessed 201. ship-money, levied by command of the
king without authority of law, 4 August 1635. By
resisting this claim of the king in legal strife, he upheld
the rights of the people under the law and became
entitled to grateful remembrance. His work on earth
ended after the conflict in Chalgrove Field, the 1 8 June
1643. And he rests in Great Hampden Church.'
The main part of the parish is very flat, the land ly-
ing for the most part about 300 ft. above the Ordnance
datum.3 The greater part, particularly in the north,
is laid down in permanent grass, with about 497 acres
of arable land and no wood.4 The subsoil is Gault
and Upper Greensand and the surface stiff wet clay.
It is well watered by a small tributary of the Thame
which runs through the parish from south-west to
north-east and flows close to the old church on the
east side, serving the ditches of a rectangular inclosure
near to the church and extending round the churchyard.
There are moats at Brook Farm and Moat Farm.
Two high roads pass through the parish, one from
Aylesbury to Wendover, and the other from Aylesbury
to Princes Risborough. The latter passes through
the village of Stoke Mandeville. The Great Western
Railway and the Metropolitan Extension Railway,
which has a station at Stoke Mandeville, cross the
parish. Stoke Mandeville parish was inclosed by
Act of Parliament, the award being given on 1 3
December 1798.'
The houses in the village are mostly of red brick,
one or two of the 1 8th century, and some thatched.
The old church lies on low ground three-quarters of
a mile south of the village and was for this reason
deserted, a new church being built in the village.
Stoke House, now a farm, is a pretty square 18th-cen-
tury building with parts of a moat on the west and
north sides lying between the village and the old church.
Stoke Grange to the north of the village, Hall End to
the west, and Whitethorne Farm, are outlying farms.
In the time of King Edward the
MANORS Confessor the manor of STOKE
MAKDEV1LLE was held by Bishop
Wulfwig6 of Dorchester, and after the Norman
Conquest William I restored it to the episcopal see,
then held by his favourite Remigius. The grant
was confirmed to Lincoln by William Rufus,7 and the
bishops remained the overlords of the manor till the
1 7th century.8 At the time of the Domesday Survey,9
however, the manor of Stoke Mandeville was appen-
dant to the church of Aylesbury, a prebend of
Lincoln Cathedral.
At the close of the I2th century the manor was
held in two parts of the Bishop of Lincoln, each of
his tenants holding the fee of one knight.
One moiety was in the hands of a Kentish family,
taking their name from Eynsford. In 1 1 66 10 a
William de Eynsford held six knights' fees of the
1 Local Govt. Bd. Order 25 Mar. 1885.
• Harl. MS. 3688. » OrJ. Sur-v.
4 Inf. from Bd. of Agric. (1905).
1 Com. Incl. Award.
• y.C.H. Buck,, i, 233*.
' Dugdale, Mem. Angl. Hi, 270.
8 Testa de Nruill (Rec. Com.), 245* ;
Feud, Aids, i, 98 ; Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser.
360
2), cclxxxiv, no. 100; ibid. Misc. dxxx,
4 Chas. I, pt. 25, no. 127.
• V.C.H. Buch. i, 233*.
" Red Bk. Exch. (Rolls Ser.), 376.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
STOKE MANDEVILLE
Bishop of Lincoln, and his heir appears to have been
called Roger, since at the close of the 12th century a
William son of Roger held one fee in Stoke Mande-
ville." This William may be identified with the
William de Eynsford who made a grant of one virgate
of land in Stoke in 1 199." At his death, which took
place before 1*31," he held the 'manor of Stoke,'
which was delivered by the king's escheators to the
Bishop of Lincoln during the minority of the heir,
another William de Eynsford,14 who presumably was
seised of this part of Stoke when he came of age. He
seems to have left two daughters " as his heirs, one of
whom married Nicholas de Cryel and the other William
Heringaud." The heiress of William Heringaud was
Christiana, the wife of William de Kirkeby," and she
appears to have inherited the moiety of the manor of
Stoke Mandeville. A certain Agnes daughter of Robert
de la Lese of Eynsford had some right in it, however,
since in 1 282 "she quitclaimed it to both Nicholas
son of Nicholas de Cryel and to William de Kirkeby
and Christiana. In 1301 or 1302," William de
Kirkeby died seised of this moiety of the manor, held
in right of his wife and she held it alone in I 302-3.*'
In 1 309," however, she granted her moiety of the
manor to William Inge. During her life she was to
hold it of him at the rent of £10 a year," the rever-
sion being to William and his heirs, to hold of Chris-
tiana and her heirs. William Inge granted the moiety
to his daughter Joan on her marriage with Eudo la
Zouche.*3 Eudo died in 1 326," and Joan claimed
the manor as part of her own inheritance. She after-
wards married Sir William Moton,'4 who held half a
knight's fee in Stoke Mandeville in 1 346." Another
Sir William Moton, probably his grandson, died seised
in 1393" of a manor in Stoke Mandeville called
OLDBURT MJNOR" which may probably be iden-
tified with the ' moiety of the manor of Stoke Mande-
ville,' leaving a son Robert as his heir, a minor at his
father's death.
Robert Moton obtained seisin of the manor," but it
was claimed by K William la Zotache of 'Totteneys,'
the grandson of Eudo la Zouche and Joan. William
based his claim on the original grant by William Inge
which was made to Eudo and Joan " and the heirs of
their bodies, so that her heir by Sir William Moton
had no right in the manor. The suit was protracted
since Robert Moton was abroad on the king's service **
in 1402, but William la Zouche was apparently suc-
cessful, as he held the manor of Stoke Mandeville in
1409." In that year he granted it to Henry, Bishop
of Winchester, Hugh Mortimer, Robert Isham, and
John Neubold. From these feoffees this manor must
shortly have passed to Henry Brudenell, a younger son
of William Erud:nell of Aynho." By his will, dated
22 Jan. 1430-1, he left the manor of Oldbury to his
third son Robert,54 from whom descended the Brude-
nells of Stoke Mandeville.1* Robert was succeeded by
his son John Brudenell, who died in 1533," but the
manor is not mentioned among the lands held at his
death."
His grandson Francis," however, died seised of the
manor of Oldbury,40 and it passed to his son and
grandson, both called Edmund. Both Francis and
Edmund his son held the manor of Oldbury,4'
and another manor in the parish called NEWBURT
(q.v.), names which had disappeared by 1813,"
and it seems probable that the two moieties of the
manor of Stoke Mandeville were united. In various
settlements made by the Brudenells the 'manor of
Stoke Mandeville ' a is the name used apparently for
the same property which had been included under
Newbury and Oldbury. Edmund Brudenell the
grandson of Francis, together with Joyce his wife, quit-
claimed the manor in 1628 M to Christopher Parkins
and his heirs, but this may only have been a settlement.
Lipscomb44 gives 1639 as the date of the sale by
Edmund Brudenell to Thomas Harborne.
In 1712" Thomas Jackson was said by the same
historian to have been in possession of Stoke Mande-
ville and he died there in 1723. He was possibly
succeeded by his son John, who endowed a
charity in the parish.46* In 1745, however, John
Smith held the manor and obtained a quitclaim
from Henry Eggleton and Dorothy his wife." It
seems probable that he may have been succeeded by
William Wiseman Clarke, whose grandmother Eliza-
beth was a daughter of another John Smith, possibly
his father.4* William Wiseman Clarke, the great-
grandson of Elizabeth, held the manor of Stoke M.in-
deville in the latter part of the 1 8th century,4' and in
1790 *° he sold it to Charles Lucas of Aylesbury, who
was lord of the manor in 1813." His daughter held
it in 1 862," and it is now the property of Mr. Edward
Lucas.
The other fee in Stoke Mandeville was held of the
Bishop of Lincoln at the close of the 1 3th century, by
Geoffrey de Mandeville in dower of his wife. In 1 254,"
however, he was said to hold the whole of Stoke, but
this is probably due to an omission, since the other
moiety was held separately and directly from the
u Tnu di NtviU (Rec. Com.), 145*.
**Ahbrcv. Plae. (Rec. Com.), 23.
11 Cat. Clou, 1 227-31, p. 564.
14 Ibid. 1231-4, p. 112.
u Ibid. 1272-9, p. 23.
»• flu. Ji Qua War. (Rec. Com.), 258*.
"7 Feud. AiJi, i, 86.
» Feet of F. Dir. Co. Eait. 10 Edw. I,
not. 42, 43, 45.
" Chan. Inq. p.m. 30 Edw. I, no. 31.
*> Ftud. AiJi, i, 98.
" Feet of F. Buclu. Mich. 3 Edw. II.
>* Ibid.
* Chan. Inq. p.m. 20 Edw. II, no. 31.
" Ibid.
* De Banco R. Trin. 6 Edw. II, m.
147 d. ; Feet of F. Buck*. Trin. I Edw.
III.
* FiuJ. Aidi, i, 123.
* Nicholli, Hill, and Antij. if Ltiei.
i*, pt. 2, p. 870. The Mcond William
Moton it omitted in the pedigree in Viiit.
of Norn. (Harl. Soc. iv), 128, 129.
* Chan. Inq. p.m. 16 Ric. II (pt. i),
no. 21.
*• Cal. Pat. 1401-5, p. 175.
10 De Banco R. 570, m. 268 d. ; ibid,
m. 442 d.
11 Ibid.
•* Cal. Pat. 1401-;, p. 175.
" Chin. Inq. p.m. 3 Hen. V, no. 46.
* Collint, fttragt ofEngl. (ed. Brydget),
iii, 488.
» Ibid.
* I' nit. ofBueb. 1566 (ed. Metcalfe).
•7 Esch. Inq. p.m. bdle. 29, no. 4.
M Lipicomb, Hiit. of Bucki. ii, 447.
Pedigree of Brudenell from Cardigan
MSS.
" According to the fiiit. of Bueki.
1566, Francit wat the greit-grandion of
thit John Brudenell.
40 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser 2), cclrxxiv, no.
100.
41 Feet of F. Bucki. Eatt. 8 Jat. I ; ibid.
Trin. 16 Jat. I ; Chan. Inq. p.m. Misc.
dxzi, pt. 25, no. 127.
4> l.yioni, Ma fun Brit, i, 635.
*• Feet of F. Bucki. Eait, 4 Chat. I ;
Recov. R. Eait. 4 Chat. I.
44 Feet of F. Bucki. Eatt. 4 Chat. I ;
Recor. R. Eait 4 Chat. I.
4t Hiit. of Bucki. ii, 448.
« Ibid. 449.
*. Cf. Charitiet of Stoke Mandeville.
*~> Feet of F. Bucki. Eait. 18 Geo. II.
48 Burke, Commoner!, i, 1 10.
41 Lytont, Magna Brit, i, 635 ; Burke,
Commoner it i, 1 1 o.
H Lytont, lot. cit.
" Ibid.
M Sheahan, To fog. of Bucki. 197.
« Hand. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
46
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
MANDEVILLK. Quar-
terly or and gules.
Bishop of Lincoln. Geoffrey died before 1269"
leaving his son John de Mandeville as his heir. The
manor and parish seem to have taken their name from
Geoffrey de Mandeville, but his family did not hold
the fee for long, since John
held no lands in Bucking-
hamshire at his death." In
1284-6 M his moiety was held
by John de Kirkeby, Bishop
of Ely, but it has not been
traced how he obtained it.
Shortly afterwards he granted
it to his brother William de
Kirkeby and his wife Chris-
tiana for their lives." William
died seised in 1301 or 1302,"
and Christiana held it alone
in 1 302-3 M and I3I6.60 William de Kirkeby was his
brother's heir ; 61 hence on Christiana's death some
time after 1 3 16 61 the Bishop of Ely's moiety of Stoke
Mandeville passed to the heirs of William. He had
no children and his lands were divided amongst his
four sisters,63 Stoke Mandeville forming part of the
share of his eldest sister Margaret. She had married
Walter Doseville,64 but both she and her husband pre-
deceased Christiana. Her eldest son John died with-
out direct heirs,65 and Hugh Doseville his brother66
succeeded to the moiety of the manor, which seems to
have been settled on Hugh in I3I3-67 In I3I468 he
enfeoffed Master John Doseville and Robert Dose-
ville and the heirs of Robert of its reversion. Robert
was in seisin in I332,69 when Robert son of William
Grimbaud, the descendant of another of the heiresses
of William de Kirkeby, claimed a moiety of the manor
of Stoke Mandeville from him. Hugh Doseville was
called to give warrant'.-/0 but the suit was indefinitely
postponed, as one of the parties was under age.
The Dosevilles, however, were not dispossessed, since
in 1 346 " Nicholas Doseville had succeeded Robert.
The manor appears to have undergone a further sub-
division, since three tenants appear, and the Dose-
villes held only a half of a knight's fee.78 Nicholas
Doseville seems to have been the last of that name to
hold the moiety of Stoke Mandeville manor, and possi-
bly left two daughters as his heiresses. The moiety
seems to have been the inheritance of Joan the wife
of Robert Derwahhaw and Cecilia the wife of Sir
Robert le Straunge.7* In 1372 the latter complained
that she had been disseised of the manor of Stoke
Mandeville by Robert Derwalshaw and Joan, but in
1374" Robert le Straunge and his wife and her heirs
quitclaimed a moiety of the manor to Derwalshaw and
Joan and her heirs. These latter granted the rever-
sion, to fall in on their deaths, to John de Kyngesfold,
who in turn sold it to Alice Ferrers the celebrated
mistress of Edward III.75 She deputed John Bernes
and others to receive her interest from Robert Derwal-
shaw 76 on the understanding that they should re-en-
feoff Robert and Joan for their lives. This was done,
but on the attainder of Alice Ferrers the moiety of
the manor was seized by the king's escheators,77 though
she had no right in it, but only in the reversion. She,
however, also held two-thirds of a messuage in Stoke
Mandeville78 of Robert Derwalshaw. In 1378"
Robert, his wife having died, obtained restitution of
his moiety to hold for life without paying rent, on
condition that he kept it without waste. The rever-
sion was vested in the king,80 who, however, granted
it in 1380 in fee simple to Sir Willi.im de Windsor,81
who had married Alice Ferrers. To whom it after-
wards passed does not appear. Sir William apparently
held no lands in Buckinghamshire at his death,83
and the family of Brudenell seem to have obtained
possession of this moiety of Stoke Mandeville at
this time. It seems possible that it was known as
the manor of Newbury. Edmund Brudenell, the
eldest son of William Brudenell of Aynho and
Raans,8* was a Clerk of Parliament during the reigns
of Edward III and Richard II, and is said84 to have
held the manor, but it is not mentioned in his will,
dated 21 June 1425. His only daughter and heiress
Alice ** became a nun, and his lands in Stoke Man-
deville may have passed to his brother Henry, whose
descendant Francis Brudenell of Stjke Mandeville
died seised of the manors of Newbury and Oldbury in
1 60 1 — ».** The two manors were held together from
this time, and the manor of Newbury followed the
same descent as Oldbury (q.v.).
In 1254" Geoffrey de Mandeville held the view
of frankpledge in Stoke Mandeville and paid l8/. a
year for the right. In 1616-17 Edmund Brudenell
obtained a grant of view of frankpledge to be held
twice a year for his tenants in StoKe Mandeville,
Ellesborough, and Little Kimble.88 The Clarkes of
Ardington also held view of frankpledge and many
other rights.89 William de Kirkeby "° obtained a grant
of free warren in his demesne lands in Stoke Hailing,
a hamlet in the parish, from Edward I.
The manor of BURLETS apparently took its
name from the family of Burley who held land in
Stoke Mandeville in the early part of the 1 4th cen-
tury. It seems to have been held at that time
of the Kirkebys, but afterwards, about 1346, of the
Bishop of Lincoln himself. In 1304" Peter de
Leycestre died seised of lands in Stoke Hailing, held
of Robert de Burley and his heirs, and in 1 3 1 3 9S
the same Robert obtained certain lands in Stoke
Mandeville from William Billy. In 1346 93 William
de Burley's name appears as paying the feudal aid
due from one knight's fee in Stoke Mandeville,
61 Exarfta e Rot. Fin. (Rolls Ser.), ii,
495;
5a Cal. Inf. p.m. Ediv. /, no. i 54.
•• Feud. Aids, i, 86.
*7 Chan. Inq. p.m. 30 Edw. I, no. JI.
*8 Ibid.
69 Feud. Aids, i, 98. «» jbid. , 1 2.
61 Chan. Inq. p.m. 18 Edw. I, no. 37.
"Feud. Aids, i, 112.
88 Chan. Inq. p.m. 30 Edw. I, no. 31 ;
Abkre-v. Rot. Orig. (Rec. Com.), i, 123.
•4 Ibid.
« De Banco R. Hil. 5 & 6 Edw. II, m.
152.
68 Ibid. Trin. no. 286, m. 139 d.
•' Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 7 Edw. II.
«8 Ibid. 8 Edw. II.
69 De Banco R. 286, m. I39d.
7» Ibid.
71 Feud. Aids, 1,123.
7» Ibid.
7' Assize R. 1477, m. 46.
7< Feet. off. Bucks. East. 47 Edw. III.
"5 Cal. Pat. 1 377-8 1, p. 226.
76 Ibid. 7? Ibid.
78 Chan. Inq. p.m. I Ric. II, no. 30.
7« Cal. Pat. 1377-81, p. 226.
* Ibid.
81 Ibid. 503.
88 Chan. Inq. p.m. 8 Ric. II, no 38.
362
88 Collins, Peerage ofEngl. (ed. Brydges),
iii, 488.
84 Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii.
86 Collins, Peerage (ed. Brydges), iii, 438.
88 Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii, 447 ;
Pedigree of Brudenell from Cardigan MSS.
87 Hand. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
88 Pat. 14 Jas. I, pt. 13.
89 Recov. R. Mich. 2 Geo. IV.
90 Chart. R. 89, m. 3, no. 23 (24
Edw. I).
91 Chan. Inq. p.m. 32 Edw. I, no. 42.
» Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. 6 Edw. II,
nos. 17, 1 8.
93 Feud. Aids, i, 123.
GREAT MISSENDEN CHURCH : NAVE LOOKING EAST
STOKE MANDEVILLE CHURCH : INTERIOR LOOKING EAST
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
STOKE MANDF.VILLE
which had formerly been held by Christiana de
Kirkeby. The division of the two knights' fees be-
longing to the Bishop of Lincoln at this time suggests
th.it a mistake was made in the return, since it seems
unlikely that only one fee remained to the heirs of
William and Christiana de Kirkeby respectively, while
the other fee had been alienated to the Burleys.
More probably William de Burley, who may have pre-
viously held of the Kirkebys, now held his land directly
of the Bishop of Lincoln, and so appears for the first
time as paying the feudal aid due from his land. In
1354" Alice de Burley, possibly the widow of Wil-
liam, held land in Stoke Mandeville. In the i;th
century the manor of Burleys came into the possession
of the elder branch of the Brudenell family. Edmund
Brudenell of Raans,*6 nephew of that Henry Bru-
denell who first held the manor of Oldbury, granted
Burleys Manor in 1452 to Edmund Rede and
others, presumably as trustees. Edmund Brudenell
died in 1470" and was succeeded by his son
Drew,*7 but whether the latter ever was seised of
the manor is not certain. At his death ** no men-
tion is made of it, but it afterwards came into
the possession of his nephew Thomas, who inherited
part of his lands. Drew's son and heir, Edmund,
died, leaving no children," and in 1538 Thomas
Brudenell held a court baron for Burleys Manor.100
In the next year he sold it "" to John Bosse, in whose
name the manorial court was held.10* From John
Bosse 1M it passed to his descendants Richard, Francis,
Samuel, and Thomas Bosse in turn.104 The last-
named, together with his wife Elizabeth, sold the
manor of Burleys in 1617 to Alexander Jennings,1"
who was holding it in 1640,'°* when his land was
assessed at the yearly value of ,o/. Lands in Stoke
Mandeville were conveyed by Francis Jennings of
Stoke Mandeville to Richard Jennings in 1653,""
but the manor of Burleys is not mentioned in
the indenture. In 1 664 "* the land formerly
held by Alexander Jennings was held by Anne Jen-
nings, widow, and Michael Jennings. In the 1 8th
century the manor was held by John Smith lo* with
the manor of Stoke Mandeville, and afterwards passed
to the Clarkes of Ardington.
The family of Stonor acquired lands in Stoke
Mandeville and Stoke Hailing during the 1 3th cen-
tury, and their lands were afterwards called the manor
of STONORS. In 1297-8 "° Robert Albon and his
wife Alice sold some land in Stoke Hailing to Peter de
Leycester. Peter died about 1304'" seised of several
tenements there, which he held of various lords, and
they passed to his kinswoman Juliana de Leyccstre the
wife of Walter de Bernthorp. The latter was pre-
sented in 1305-6 '"for obstructing a common road at
Stoke Hailing, but in I 323, after the deathof Juliana,"1
Robert Albon released to John de Stonor his whole
right in the land that had belonged to Peter de
Leycestre or Gilbert Poygant ; Peter de Barton
and Nicholas de Leycestre also quitclaimed '" tene-
ments in Stoke Hailing to John de Stonor. Juliana's
husband held his wife's lands for life. Thus the
Stonors seem to have succeeded Juliana de Leycester,
and both Peter de Leycestre and John de Stonor
held some of their lands in Stoke of the Burleys.1"
John de Stonor died in 1354"* and was succeeded by
his son and heir, another John de Stonor. The lands
in Stoke Mandeville passed after his death to his son
Edmund Stonor,"7 who in turn was succeeded by his
son John. The latter, who was a minor, died be-
fore he attained his majority,1" and his lands passed
to his younger brother Ralph in 1389 or 1390.'"
Ralph enfcoffed William Sutton and others of
lands and tenements in Stoke Mandeville,"0 but
this was presumably merely a settlement, since he
died seised of tenements there in I 394. '" This, how-
ever, seems to be the last time that the Stonors are
mentioned as holding this estate.
In the 15th century the manor of Stonors in Stoke
Mandeville apparently came into the possession of
the Brudenells. Edmund Brudenell, who had held
the manor of Burleys before 1452,"* does not seem
to have held Stonors Manor as well, and possibly it
remained with the Stonors until the time of Thomas
Stonor, who in 14.70"* sold the manor of Bierton-
Stonors in the neighbouring parish of Bierton. Thomas
Brudenell, however, held the manor of Stonors about
1539, apparently in right of his wife. She was
Elizabeth Fitz William,"4 and it does not seem likely
that she can have had any right in the manor except by
a marriage settlement. They sold it in I 540,"* to-
gether with Burleys Manor, to John Bosse, from which
time the two manors were held together.
A mill is mentioned in Domesday Book,1" and was
then worth lot. a year, but to which moiety of Stoke
Mandeville it afterwards appertained does not appear.
In 1628'" Edmund Brudenell, who was then seised of
the whole manor, held a water-mill amongst the
appurtenances.
The church of ST. MART is a
CHURCHES modern structure consisting of a
chancel, nave, south aisle, and south-
west tower, and is constructed of flints with brick
quoins and dressings to the windows. It was built in
1886, and is designed in a style distantly approaching
that of the I 3th century.
The OLD CHURCH consists of a chancel 246. by
1 2 ft., and a nave 40 ft. by 1 7 ft. 9 in., within the
western end of which is built a late brick tower, a
»' Chan. Inq. p.m. 18 Edw. Ill (lit
no*.), no. 58.
•* Liptcomb, Hitt. tf Bucki. ii, 447.
•• Chan. Inq. p.m. 9*10 Edw. IV,
no. u-
••• Ibid.
» Cat. l»f. f.m. Hen. ril, not. 563,
564.
n Ibid. no. {64 ; Collini, Pttrtgi (rd.
Br.dget), iii, 491.
i" B.M. Add. Chart. 47360.
><" Feet of F. Bucki. Mich. 31 Hen.
VIII.
101 B.M. Add. Chart. 47369, m. 2.
>•• Chan. Inq. p.m. (S«r. 2), cxviii,
no. 4.
"* B.M. Add. Chart. 47369, m. 3 j
Feet of F. Buck*. Bait. 27 Kliz. ; B.M.
Add. Chart. 47369, m. 567 ; Chan. Inq.
p.m. (Ser. 2), Miic. dviii, no. 21.
1M Feet of F. Bucki. Mil. I ; Jit. I.
««• (P.R.O.) Lay Subt. R. bdle. 80, no.
302.
lo? Clote, 1653, pt. 39, no. 30.
1B» (P.R.O.) Lay Subt. R. bdle. So, no.
336.
"• Cf. Stoke Mandeville Minor.
110 Feet of F. Bucki. Hil. 26 Edw. I.
111 Chan. Inq. p.m. 32 Edw. I, no. 42.
»» A bkrrv. Plat. (Rec. Com.), 298.
"'• Ibid. 348.
114 Feet of F. Bucki Mich. loElw. II.
114 Chan. Inq. p.m. 32 Edw. I, no. 42 ;
if id. 28 Edw. Ill (lit not.), no. 58.
363
»• Ibid.
W Vilit. of Oxm. (Harl. Soc. T), 143 ,
Chan. Inq. p.m. 13 Ric. II, no. 48.
"" Chan. Inq. p.m. 13 Ric. II, no. 48.
'" Coram Rege R. Mich. 20 Ri, . II,
m. 26.
"•Cloie, 14 Ric. II, m. 38d.
In Chan. Inq. p.m. 18 Ric. II, no. 39.
»» Ibid. 9 & 10 Edw. IV, no. 34.
"• Feet of F. Bucki. Eatt. 9 Edw. IV.
»< Collini, Ptertgt (ed. Bridge.), iii,
49'-
>» Feet of F. Bucki. Mich. 31 II n.
VIII.
'« y.C.H. B«*i. 1,233.
"' Rccov. R. Eatt. 4 Chat. I ; Feet of
F. Bucki. Eatt. 4 Chat. I.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
south aisle 7 ft. 6 in. wide, and a half-timbered north
porch. The narrow chancel arch appears to be the
only remaining architectural feature of a small 12th-
century church which consisted of a nave of the
same size and a chancel somewhat shorter than the
present ones. In the first half of the I3th century
the chancel was lengthened, but the side walls were
probably not rebuilt, and the south aisle was added in
the first quarter of the 1 4th century, and the large
north-east window of the nave probably dates from
the middle of the same century. In the 1 5th cen-
tury the nave walls were raised, and a low-pitched
roof put on, but the only clearstory windows appear
to be of much later date. The tower belongs to the
last half of the lyth century.
The east window of the chancel is of three cinque-
foiled lights with trefoiled lights over, beneath a two-
centred head, and is of 15th-century date. The
north wall is without openings, but the south contains
two windows. That to the east is a 1 3th-century
lancet with a wide internal splay and external rebate, and
beneath it is a 13th-century piscina with a shouldered
head, and a drain in the sill of the recess. The
other window is square-headed, of two trefoiled lights,
the jambs being of 14th-century date, but the head of
the 1 5th. The mullions and jambs, both external and
internal, are moulded, the latter with a pointed bow-
tel. Between these windows is a very narrow door-
way with a chamfered three-centred head, probably of
the 1 5th century. The chancel arch is round-headed,
5 ft. 9 in. wide, of a single square order with a cham-
fered and beaded abacus, which is continued on the
west face up to the north wall of the nave. On
either side are two small roughly-cut squints, that on
the north side having a cinquefoiled head about mid-
way in the thickness of the wall. It has been blocked
with a thin brick wall of recent date, and the southern
squint is entirely built up on the west side.
The north wall of the nave, which probably retains
in the lower part its 12th-century walling, has one
large 14th-century window near the east end, from
which the tracery has been removed and replaced by
a wooden frame. The north door is of 14th-century
date, with a continuous wave-mould in the jambs and
two-centred head. The porch is perhaps of the 1 5 th
century, with a low-pitched roof, which cuts into the
label of the doorway. It is entirely of timber con-
struction. The south arcade is of three bays with
octagonal piers, and moulded capitals and bases, the
latter very plain. The arches are two-centred, of two
chamfered orders, both chamfers having carefully de-
signed stops, those in the inner order taking the form of
heads of men or beasts, and the label of ogee section
has grotesque human heads for drips. The west win-
dow of the aisle is of late 15th-century date, with
three cinquefoiled lights under a three-centred arch.
The two clearstory windows are square-headed and
perfectly plain, probably 18th-century insertions, one
at the south-east to light the pulpit, the other at the
uorth-west to light a west gallery. The south aisle
has a 15th-century east window of two cinquefoiled
lights with tracery under a square head ; to the north
of it is a small image bracket. In the south wall the
eastern window is of two trefoiled lights with a
quatrefoil over of flowing tracery, c. 1325, and just
to the east of the south doorway is a single three-
centred light of late date. West of the doorway is a
square-headed 1 5th-century window of two cinquefoiled
lights, and rather coarse detail. The south doorway
has a two-centred head of a single hollow-chamfered
order, and is of the date of the arcade.
The east wall of the tower is of plastered brickwork,
and is carried on a pointed arch which springs on the
north from a chamfered respond with an engaged
shaft, and on the south from a complete pier of the same
detail, set a little to the west of the second column
of the south arcade, but to the north of its line.
It stands free on all sides, the wall which it carries
butting against the north face of the arcade, the label
of which is cut away from this point. The mouldings
of arch and pier are carefully worked in plaster on a
brick core, the details of the capitals being of the
Tuscan order, and above the arch is a moulded string
breaking up over the crown. The stair is on the
north side, being carried up from the first floor in an
octagonal turret at the north-east, finished with a
domed cap of brickwork. The windows of the belfry
stage are of two pointed lights under a round head
with a pierced spandrel, and there is a similar window
in the second story on the west.
The chancel roof is underdrawn with a plaster
ceiling and covered with red tiles ; the nave roof is
plain work of I 5th-century date, and the aisle roof is
probably contemporary with it. In the chancel arch
are the marks of a screen, and also in the east respond
of the south arcade.
The church has been abandoned since the building
of the new church, and is now in a deplorable condi-
tion. The nave roof is rotten and full of holes, the
walls cracked and sodden with rain, and the whole
building smothered in ivy, which has pushed its way
through the roofs and unglazed windows. A few
decaying pews remain in the nave, which is open to
any chance comer, and desecrated with the scribbled
names of trippers."*
A few fittings taken from it are preserved in the
new church. The font is octagonal, of the 151)1 cen-
tury, with square panels on the bowl, the alternate
panels containing a rose, a leaf pattern, a blank shield,
and what seems to be the representation of a shrine
with a gabled top, on which is a cresting of trefoiled
arches, with a cross at either end.
There is also a canopied tomb of Jacobean style to
three children of Edmund Brudenell, with a rhyming
inscription : —
Cruell death by mortal blades
Hathe slaine foure of my Tender babes
Whereof Mary Thomas and Dorothye
Within this place there bodies lie
But God which never man deceaved
Hath their souls to him receaved
This death to them is greatest gayne
Increasinge their joy freeing them from payne
O Dorathie my blessed childe
Which lovingly lyved and dyed mild
Thou wert my tenth even God's own choys
In the exceedingly I did rejoyse
Upon Good friday at night my doll depted
Adew my sweet and most true hearted
My bodye with thine I desyre should lye
When God hath appointed me to dye
la8 That »uch an interesting building,
with its beautiful south arcade, and long
history, should be left to its fate in this
364
manner is nothing less than a public dis-
grace to the parish.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
Hoping through Christ he will provide
For my soul wlh thyne in heaven to abide
And I your father Edmund Brudcnell
Untill the resurection with the will dwell
And so adew my sweet lambs three
Untill in heaven I shall you see
Such is my hope of Richard my son
Whose body licth buried in King's Button.
There are five bells, the treble and second by Ellis
Knight, 1633, the third of 1730, the fourth of 1659,
an early work of the younger Henry Knight, and
the tenor by Ellis Knight, 1636.
A plated set of communion vessels is in use ;
other stiver plate exists but cannot, it is alleged, be
found.
The registers are said to be lost.
The chapel of Stoke Mandeville
JDPOfPSON was originally appendant to the pre-
bendal church of Aylesbury, together
with the chapelries of Bierton, Buckland, and Quar-
rendon.1" In 1266 "* the four chapels were granted
by the Bishop of Lincoln to the Dean and Chapter of
Lincoln, and in 1294"' a vicarage was instituted of
Bierton Church, with the chapels of Stoke Mandeville,
Buckland, and Quarrendon. A separate chaplain was
to be found by the vicar of Bierton to serve the chapel
of Stoke Mandeville,1" the altar dues being worth
7 marks a year. In 1858 the chapels of Stoke
Mandeville and Buckland '" were separated from
Bierton, and formed separate benefices. The Dean
and Chapter of Lincoln are still patrons of the living,
which is now a vicarage. The rectorial estate has
belonged since 1 294 to the dean and chapter.
It was leased by them in the 1 8th century to the
governors of Christ's Hospital, London, who held
it in 1813 and 1862.'" The rectorial estate became
the property of the Ecclesiastical Commissioners in
I870.1"*
A detached portion of Stoke Mandeville parish, at
Prestwood, was amalgamated in 1852"* with parts of
Hughenden and Great Missenden parishes, and as-
signed to the Consolidated Chapelry of Prestwood,
which forms a separate ecclesiastical parish. The
living is a vicarage, of which Mr. C. D. Disraeli
is the patron. The church of the Holy Trinity
•was built shortly before the formation of the parish,
WESTON TURVILLE
and was consecrated in 1849. It was enlarged
in 1885.
There is a Wesleyan chapel in Stoke Mandeville,
built in 1818.
George Shaw,"* who was curate of Stoke Man-
deville and Buckland in 1774, attained consider-
able fame as a naturalist in the i8th century.
He was the younger son of the Rev. Timothy Shaw,
the vicar of Bierton, and was born in 1751, and as a
boy showed his love for natural history. He was
ordained deacon in 1774, but afterwards abandoned
the Church as a profession, to study medicine at
Edinburgh. He then went to Oxford as botanical
lecturer. He took part in 1788 in the founding of
the Linnaean Society in London, where he had prac-
tised for a year, and became one of the vice-presidents
of the society. In 1791 Shaw was appointed assistant-
keeper of the natural history section of the British
Museum, and was keeper from 1807 till his death in
1813. He was an indefatigable worker, and the writer
of many scientific papers and books.
In 1726 John Jackson, for carry-
CH4RITIES ing out the desire of his late father,
Thomas Jackson, by deed settled a
yearly rent-charge of £i for providing 120 twopenny
loaves of good wholesome bread for the poor on
Easter Day. The rent-charge is paid out of three cot-
tages situated near the Bull Inn.
Charity of Annabella Ligo, founded by indenture
of 1 5 October 1733, consists of 3 roods in this parish,
let at £z a year. In 1907 45 poor persons received
gifts of bread in respect of these charities.
Unknown donor — In the Parliamentary returns of
1786, a yearly sum of £i io/. was stated to be dis-
tributed to the poor of this parish, who also had a
right to forty days' thrashing of wheat, barley, and
bean straw. In respect of this charity, the sum of
£5 a year was formerly paid by the Governors of
Christ's Hospital under a lease from the Dean and
Chapter of Lincoln of the rectorial estate of this
parish, which became the property of the Ecclesi-
astical Commissioners in 1870.
The charge was redeemed by the Ecclesiastical
Commissioners in 1880 by the transfer to the official
trustees of .£167 new 3 per cent, stock, now consols,
now producing yearly £4 3*. 4^., which is distributed
in gifts of money.
WESTON TURVILLE
Weston, xi cent. ; Weston Tnrville, xiii cent.
The parish of Weston Turville contains 2,323}
acres of land,1 of which rather more than 1 ,070 are
arable, the rest, with the exception of about 7^ acres of
wood, being laid down in permanent pasture.' The
subsoil is Gault, Upper Greensand, and Chalk, the
surface being variable, either loam or day. The
population is occupied in agriculture and duck breed-
ing. A little straw-plait is still made, but the indus-
try is gradually dying out. The parish is well
watered by various streams running north, one of
which supplies the water for the mill. There are
moats at the Manor House, Manor Farm at West End,
and near Broughton Farm. The Wendover branch
of the Grand Junction Canal crosses the parish, and
there is a large reservoir belonging to the Canal
Company in the extreme south. The land lies for
the most part between 200 ft. and 300 ft. above the
Ordnance datum, and the village stands 300 ft. above
the same datum. The Akeman Street, which runs
from Aylesbury to Tring, and the main road from
Aylesbury to Wendover, which follows the line of
the Lower Icknield Way for part of its course, cross
the parish, and the village of Weston Turville lies at
«• Cal. PH. 1313-17, p. 304.
i" Ibid.
ul Line. Epii. Reg. Bp. Sutton't Init.
ut Rte. of Bucki. i, 233-45.
10 Sheahan,//!!/. tnd Tofog.ofBucti. 1 09.
114 Ljrioni, Mtna Brit, i, 6 3 5 ; Shcahan,
Hiit. and To fog. of But la. 199.
uu Cf. Chiritici of Stoke MandeYille.
365
«* Lund. Can. 9 April 1851 (1019).
"• Diet. Nat. Biog. li, 436.
1 Ord Surv.
1 Inf. supplied bjr Bd. of Agric. (190;).
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
the crossing. The nearest station is Stoke Mande-
ville, on the Metropolitan Extension Railway, about
l£ miles away. A Roman amphora and other objects
were discovered in the rectory garden. The parish
was inclosed by Act of Parliament, the award bearing
the date 5 July l8oo.s The manor-house is the
residence of Mr. T. C. H. Hedderwick.
In the time of the Confessor*
MANORS WESTON TURVILLE was held in four
parts. Earl Leofwine held 9^ hides of
land himself, and two of his men held \\ hides ; z
hides were held by a man of Earl Tosti ; Godric the
sheriff held 3^ hides as one manor, and two of his
men held another 3^ hides, making a total of 20
hides. After the Norman Conquest 5 Weston Tur-
ville belonged to the lands of the Bishop of Bayeux,
and the earlier division into four parts was obliterated.
After the forfeiture of the bishop, Weston Turville
was presumably granted to one of the Counts of
Meulan, Earls of Leicester, and in this way became
part of the honour of Leicester.6 Simon de Montfort
as Earl of Leicester 7 held it early in the 1 3th century,
but after his death the earldom was granted to Edmund
of Lancaster, the second son of Henry III.* The
latter died seised of three knights' fees9 in Weston
Turville. From his time the honour of Leicester
was held by the Earls and Dukes of Lancaster, so that
Weston Turville became part of the Duchy of Lan-
caster.10 Under the Inclosure Act of 1 798 a piece of
ground, rather more than half an acre in extent, was
allotted to the Duchy of Lancaster. It was to equal
one-twelfth of the common and waste lands and
grounds as a ' compensation for all rights and interest
of his said Majesty as Lord of the Manor.' This
\ acre was sold shortly before 1862 to Mr. John
Eldridge of Weston Turville. The paramount lord-
ship presumably passed with it, but apparently no
homage had been done to the duchy from any of the
manors in Weston Turville since the inclosure of the
common fields." The Earl of Leicester in the I3th
century held the pleas of namio vetito and the view of
frankpledge in Weston Turville. In 1254 the rights
were said to have belonged to the overlord of the
manor since the Conquest, except for a time when
the honour of Leicester was in the hands of the king.18
This presumably refers to the time just before Simon
de Montfort was made Earl of Leicester.
In the reign of Edward I the lords of the honour
also claimed to have the return of writs in the manor
of Weston Turville.13
The Bishop of Bayeux '* had subinfeudated all his
land in Weston Turville in 1086. One hide was
held by the Bishop of Lisieux, and the remainder of
the land was in the hands of Roger, who may have
been the Roger from whom the Bolebecs traced their
descent in the female line. His son was named
Anketill, and Roger son of Anketill was said to be in
seisin 15 of the manor of Weston Turville in the time
TUBVILLE. Gules
three cheverons vair.
of Henry I. Roger's daughter Isabella married a
Bolebec, and through this marriage his descendant
Herbert de Bolebec claimed the manor in I2I2.16
Whether his family ever held it in right of Isabella is
not clear, but at the time of his claim the Turvilles
were in seisin. How they became possessed of it is
also lost in obscurity, but they
may have obtained it through
another daughter and heiress
of Roger son of Anketill.
William de Turville held the
manor in the reign of King
John,17 and in I 206 he granted
it for the term of thirteen
years to Geoffrey Fitz Piers,
Earl of Essex. William de
Turville was succeeded by his
son William, who had, how-
ever, died before 1222, appa-
rently leaving no children." His heirs were Cecilia
the wife of Reginald or Roger de Croft, Isabella
the wife of Walhamet le Poure, and Petronilla the
wife of Simon de Crewelton or Turville, who were
presumably his sisters.19 The manor of Weston
Turville was divided between Cecilia and Petro-
nilla, but the land was divided amongst the
three heiresses,20 who seem each to have held one
fee." The moiety of the manor assigned to Petro-
nilla obtained the name of WESTON MOLTNS.
Simon de Crewelton seems to have assumed the
name of his wife's family and to have transmitted
it to his descendants. In 1236 he and Petronilla
obtained a quitclaim21 from Gilbert de Bolebec of
his claim to Weston Turville. They were succeeded
by William de Turville before 1278," and he in
turn was succeeded by Nicholas de Turville before
1 296-7." William was sheriff of Bedfordshire and
Buckinghamshire in 1288 and I29I,25 and Nicholas
in I293.26 The latter granted the manor to Hugh
de Turpleton in 1329," but before 1 333-4 it had
passed to Sir John de Molyns.'3 Walter son of
Hugh de Turpleton quitclaimed it to Sir John and
his wife Gille and their son John in 1 338-9." The
new tenants had obtained a pardon from the king,30
shortly after entering in the manor, of all debts and
arrears of farms due at the Exchequer from William
and Nicholas de Turville, contracted during the time
of their shrievalty. Sir John de Molyns held the
manor in 1 346. He enfeoffed his son John de
Molyns and his wife Joan for themselves and the
heirs of their bodies, with remainder to William the
brother of the feoffee.*1 John de Molyns the younger
predeceased his father,82 but his widow Joan, who
afterwards married Sir Michael Poyninges, held the
manor till her death in 1369." She had no children
by her first husband, and it passed, according to the
settlement by Sir John de Molyns, to William de
Molyns. The latter died in 1380-1," and the
• Com. Incl. Awards.
• y.C.H. Bucks, i, 234*.
• Ibid.
• Tata de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 245*.
• Ibid.
• Feud Aids, i, 86.
'Chan. Inq. p.m. 25 Edw. I, no. 5i{4).
10 Ibid. 4 Ric. II, no. 38.
11 Sheahan, Hist, and Tofog. of Bucks.
214.
" Hund. R, (Rcc. Com.), i, 20.
13 Ibid, i, 44.
" V.C.H. Bucks, i, 234*.
" Cur. Reg. R. 55, m. 8.
« Ibid.
'7 Cart. Antiq. R. Z. 34.
18 Cur. Reg. R. 81, m. 8 ; Maitland,
Bracfon's Note Bk. ii, no. 203.
" Ibid.
10 Testa de Ne-vill (Rec. Com.), 245*.
n Feud. Aids, i, 86.
M Feet of F. Buck.. Trin. 20 Hen. III.
*> Ibid. Mich. 6 Edw. I ; Feud. Aids,
i, 86.
366
M Chan. Inq. p.m. 25 Edw.I, no. 51 (i).
84 List of Sheriffs, P.R.O. M Ibid.
* Cal. Close, 1327-30, p. 524; Feet
of F. Bucks. Trin. 3 Edw. III.
28 Chart. R. 7 Edw. Ill, m. I, no. 3 ;
Cal. Pat. 1330-4, p. 493.
29 Feet of F. Bucks. Mil. 12 Edw. III.
80 Cal. Pat. 1334-8, p. 119.
81 Chan. Inq. p.m. 43 Edw. Ill, pt. z
(ist nos.), no. 15.
81 Ibid. " Ibid.
84 Chan. Inq. p.m. 4 Ric. II, no. 38.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
WESTON TURVILLE
manor was held by Margery his widow till her
death." It then passed to her grandson Sir William
de Molyns," who granted it to Margaret Bedford for
life." She held the manor at the death of a second
Sir William dc Molyns in 1429," but his daughter
and heiress Eleanor presumably entered on the manor
on Margaret's death." Eleanor married Robert
Hungerford, Lord Hungerford and de Molyns, *° and
they held the manor of Weston Molyns jointly, but
it was mortgaged in 1460*' with other lands to
raise Lord Hungerford's ransom when taken •
prisoner in Aquitaine. Lord Hungerford was at-
tainted" after the battle of Towton and died in
1465 ;° afterwards his wife married Sir Oliver
Maningham, and brought a lawsuit to recover the
ooo
Di MDLVNS. Palj
viavj or And gf/et.
HuNGERFORD. Satlt
two hart argent with rwo
roundels argent in tht
ckief.
mortgaged manors," alleging . that the debts had
been paid." Apparently she recovered Weston Mo-
lyns, since in 1491 ** Maningham granted the manor
to certain feoffees during his life, and afterwards
quitclaimed to them his right in it for ever."
Eleanor's son and heir, Thomas Hungerford, was also
attainted and beheaded in 1469.''' On the accession
of Henry VII the attainder was reversed, and Mary
his daughter and heiress was restored in blood." She
was in the wardship of William, Lord Hastings, and
was mirried to his son Edward.60 The latter was
created Lord Hungerford," and he and his wife re-
covered many of the manors belonging to her inheri-
tance, Weston Molyns being among them." After
the death of Edward Hastings his widow married Sir
Richard Sacheverell, and they were in seisin of the
manor in 151 2." It was apparently sold to Sir
Andrew Windsor, first Lord Windsor, who also
acquired the other moiety of Weston Turville about
the same time. His grandson Edward, Lord Windsor,
held the whole manor of Weston Turville in 1568,**
and died seised of it." Before 1617-18, however,
his successor must have sold it to the family of Hill."
In that year William Hill settled the manor, after his
WINDSOR. Gules t
ultire argent between
twelve cmiilen or.
death and that of his wife Dorothy, on his son
Bartholomew and Katherine his daughter-in-law and
on their sons in tail male, with further remainders.57
Bartholomew in the same year, however, was found to
have been a lunatic for many
years, but the 'lordship or
manor of Weston Turville
formerly known by the names
of the manors of Weston
Molyns and Weston Butlers '
w.is still held by his mother
according to the settlement.1^
Bartholomew's heir was his
infant son William," who may
presumably be identified with
the William Hill who held the
manor in 1677.* Another
William Hill had succeeded
him in 1 703," and, together with his wife Jane,
was in seisin of Weston Turville Manor. He
had died before 1717-18," when it was in the
hands of Jane Hill, widow, Mary, Elizabeth, and
Katherine Hill, and Martha Potter, widow, the last
four being probably his daughters and heiresses.
From them it seems to have passed to Henry Tom-
kins, who held the manor in 1754." He died in
1784," and Weston Turville presumably passed to
his son Henry. The latter only survived his father a
few years, and about 1789 his brother, Lieut.-Colonel
Tomkins, succeeded him.*4 Lieut.-Colonel Tomkins
died in 1 800, and his widow held the manor during
her life." She presumably died about 1835, when it
was advertised for sale " at the Auction Mart in
London. It was then or shortly afterwards sold by
H(enry) Tomkins to the Duke of Buckingham, who
bought large estates in Buckinghamshire at this time.
Many of them were mortgaged, and in a few yean
were seized by the mortgagees. Weston Turville was
sold to Sir Anthony de Rothschild, bart.,** a few year*
before 1862, and Lord Rothschild is now lord of the
manor.
The other moiety of the manor of Weston Tur-
ville was held by Roger Croft and his wife Cecilia,
one of the heiresses of William de Turville." Roger
Croft held one fee in demesne,70 and his moiety of the
manor afterwards became known as the manor of
WESTON BUTLERS. He and his wife obtained
a quitclaim similar to that given to Simon de Tur-
ville and Pctronilla from Gilbert de Bolebec in
1236." A Roger de Croft died in 1 25 5," but he
held no land in Buckinghamshire, and apparently
his land, held in demesne, had passed to Hugh de
Herdebcrgh in 1254." Hugh wa» succeeded by
his son Roger de Herdebergh,74 who, however, died
u Chan. Inq. p.m. 21 Ric. II, no. 31 j
QOM, 23 Ric. II, m. 4.
M Chan. Inq. p.m. 22 Ric. II, no. 31.
* Ibid, g Hen. VI, no. 38.
• Ibid. " Ibid.
« Feet of F. Div. Co. Eait. 38 Hen. VI.
« Ibid. ; Clow, 38 Hen. VI, m. 9 |
Chan. Inq. p.m. 4 Edw. IV, no. 56.
— O.E.C. Comflete Peerage.
• Chan. Inq. p.m. 4 Edw. IV, no. (6.
« Feet of F. Div. Co. Mich. 1 2 Edw. IV.
u Early Chan. Proc. bdle. 18, no. ill.
" L)e Banco R. Chart. Enr. Hil.
7 Hen. VII, m. I.
« Ibid.
* G.E.C. Comflete Peerage.
«• Ibid.
» De Banco R. Hil. 20 Hen. VII,
m. 147.
" G.E.C. Comflete Peerage.
" De Banco R. Hil. 20 Hen. VII,
m. 147.
* Feet of F. Diy. Co. Trin. 4 Hen.VIII.
M Ibid. Eait. 10 Eliz.
" Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), cUxviii,
00.47.
M Ibid, duui ; Miic. 3 Chat. I, pt. 16,
no. ii. •• Ibid.
M Ibid, cccouuiii, no. 46. " Ibid.
M Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 28 Chat. II.
•' Ibid. Trin. and East. I Anne.
« Ibid. Hil. and Trin. 4 Geo. I.
367
" Recov. R. Mich. 28 Geo. II.
" Liptcomb, Hut. of Bucki. ii, 497.
« Ibid.
** Lrioni, Mafna Brit, i, 66 1.
17 Liptcomb, Hut. of Bucks, ii, 497.
" Sheahan, Ilia, and Tofog. of Bach,
215.
" Maitland, Bracan't Note Bk. no. 203 |
Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 262.
"° Tat* de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 245*.
71 Feet uf F. Bucka. Trin. 20 Hen. III.
?» Col. Ina. Hen. Ill, 87.
7» HnnJ. R. (Ree. Com.), i, 20.
7* De Banco R. IO Edw. Ill, m. 348 ;
Excerfta e Rat. Fin. (Rec. Com.), ii, 386 j
f'tud. Aidi, i, 86.
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
BoTILtER. Guilt a
feat cheeky argent and
sable between tix cross-
lets or.
before 1296," when his land was held by his heirs,
his two daughters Ella and Isabel. The former
married William le Botiller of Wem,7' and her sister
may perhaps be identified with Isabel the wife of
John de Hulles, who, jointly with her husband,
granted the manor of Weston Turville to Ella widow
of Walter de Hopton.77 This perhaps was a settle-
ment of the inheritance of
the two sisters, since Ella may
have been married to Walter
de Hopton before her mar-
riage with William le Botiller.
It is, moreover, certain that
this moiety of the manor of
Weston Turville was not sub-
divided at this time, but passed
to Ella and her heirs. Ed-
mund le Botiller held one
knight's fee in I346,79 and
after his death it passed to his
brother Edward.79 He also
died without direct heirs in
I376,80 and the moiety of the manor of Weston
Butlers was subdivided among his four sisters or their
heirs.81 Dionisia, the eldest, was alive at the time
of her brother's death, and was the wife of Hugh
de Cokesey.81 The next sister Ida married William
Trusselof Odiham, but she had predeceased her brother,
and her purparty came to her daughter Margaret,63
the wife of Fulk de Pembrugge.84 In 1383 Fulk and
Margaret granted their quarter of Weston Butlers to
Walter de Cokesey the son and heir of Dionisia,85 so
that her descendants became possessed of a half. An-
other Walter de Cokesey died seised in 1 4O7,86 leaving
Hugh his son and heir, aged three.87 The latter died,
and the moiety of the manor passed to his sister Joice,89
whose husband was John Greville of Camden.89 Their
son Sir John Greville died seised probably in 1467"
and was succeeded by his son Thomas, who assumed the
name of Cokesey. He seems to have died in 1 49 8-9,°*
and was succeeded by his cousins Elizabeth and Mar-
gery, the daughters of Thomas Huddington and the
descendants of Cecily, a sister of Joice Cokesey. In
1500°* Elizabeth was the wife of Robert Russel, and
Margery of Robert Winter, and they sold their moiety
of Weston Butlers in that year to Sir Reginald Bray
for £120." Elizabeth afterwards married as her
second husband Sir Edward Stanley, and gave a further
quitclaim to Sir Reginald Bray.94 The latter died in
i 503, and his niece Margaret,95 who had married Wil-
liam Sandys, Lord Sandys,96 inherited the greater part
of his lands.97 A dispute arose between them and
Edmund Bray, a nephew of Sir Reginald, as to the
partition of Sir Reginald's lands, but in 15103 settle-
ment was made through the mediation of the Arch-
bishop of Canterbury and others, and the manor of
Weston Turville was granted to Edmund.98 He
seems to have sold it to Sir Peter Vavasour, Edmund
Windsor, and John Ede in 1529," and ten years Liter
Sir Andrew Windsor, Lord Windsor, was the lord of
the manor,100 which was united by him to the manor
of Weston Molyns.
The third sister of Edward le Botiller, Alice,
married Nicholas de Longville.101 She did not survive
her brother, and her son Nicholas de Longville suc-
ceeded in I376102 to a fourth part of the manor of
Weston Butlers. A third Nicholas de Longville, her
grandson, held this part of the manor in I4o6.103
Probably his share may be identified with the fourth
part of the manor afterwards known as Whaplode's
part. What Whaplode this was is unknown. A
William Whaplode died presumably during the reign
of Henry VI, since an inquisition on his lands was
made in I448.1M The finding was, however, that he
held no land in Buckinghamshire, and that neither
the date of his death nor his heir could be ascertained.
A man of the same name had been an escheator in
the county in the reign of Henry V.105 Whaplode's
part, however, came to Sir Edmund Hampden, the
second son of Edmund Hampden 1M of Great Hamp-
den, and a vigorous Lancastrian partisan. He was
attainted on the accession of Edward IV,107 and his
lands were forfeited. The king granted Whaplode's
part for life to Richard and Thomas Croft in l^6^,m
and in 1467-8 their lands were specially exempted
from the Act of Resumption of that date.109 On the
expiration of the grant this part of the manor seems to
have remained in the hands of the Crown. Possibly
it may be identified with a manor that Charles I held
belonging to the Duchy of Lancaster. In 1650 it
was taken into the hands of the commissioners for the
sale of the honours, manor, and lands belonging to
the king and queen.110
Ankaretta the fourth sister of Edward le Botiller
married John Lestrange of Blakemere, and her great-
granddaughter Elizabeth Lestrange obtained her
fourth share of the manor of Weston Butlers on the
death of Edward in I376,111 but being still a minor
it was taken into the hands of the king.111 Consider-
able confusion seems to have existed as to Elizabeth's
true name, sometimes Joan 1IS and sometimes Elizabeth
being given ; but the latter seems to be correct.11*
75 Chan. Inq. p.m. 25 Edw. I, no.
De Banco R. 308, m. 348.
77 Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. 33 Edw. I.
7« Feud. Aids, i, 124.
~9 De Banco R. 461, m. 59.
80 Chan. Inq. p.m. 49 Edw. Ill (i»t
nos.), no. 17.
81 Ibid. 82 ibid.
0» Ibid.
84 Plea R. (Chester), 105, m. 3 d.
84 Feet of F. Bucks. East. 6 Ric. II.
a* Chan. Inq. p.m. 8 Hen. IV, file 57.
"7 Ibid.
83 Harl. Soc. Publ. xjcii, 425.
8» Ibid.
90 Chan. Inq. p.m. 20 Edw. IV, no. 72
(file 556).
81 Herald and Geneal. vi, 656. In the
pedigree of the family Thomas is given as
Walter, but this is probably a mistake,
since his heirs are the same as those of
Sir Thomas Cokesey in the sale of the
manor.
w Feet of F. Bucks. East. 1 5 Hen.
VII; De Banco R. East. 15 Hen. VII,
m. 115; Hist. AfSS. Com. Rep. Various,
ii, 298.
»« Ibid.
M Feet of F. Bucks. Trin. 17 Hen.
VII ; De Banco R. Trin. 17 Hen. VII,
m. 21 d.
94 Miscell. Gen. et Herald, (new ser.), i,
62. " Ibid.
W Feet of F. Div. Co. Mich. 2 Hen.
VIII.
» Close, 2 Hen. VIII, no. 30.
99 Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 21 Hen.
VIII.
100 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), Ixi, no. 25.
101 Ibid. 49 Edw. Ill (ist nos.), no.
l°2 Ibid.
™> Coram Rege R. Mich. 8 Hen. IV,
m. 106.
104 Chan. Inq. p.m. 26 Hen. VI, no.
!«•
05 Par!. R. (Rec. Com.), iv, 319*.
106 Chan. Inq. p.m. 4 Edw. IV, no. 43.
W Ibid.
108 Cat. Pat. 1461-7, p. 473.
"» Par!. R. (Rec. Com.), v, 589*.
110 P.R.O. Parl. Surv. Bucks. 1649-
56, no. 20.
111 Chan. Inq. p.m. 49 Edw. Ill (lit
nos.), no. 17.
118 Abbre-u. Rot. Orig. (Rec. Com.), ii,
337
u» Ibid.
368
. .
114 Chan. Inq. p.m. 49 Edw. Ill (ist
nos.), no. 17; De Banco R. Hil. Edw. Ill,
m. 59 ; Chan. Inq. p.m. 22 Ric. II, no.
131 ; Fine R. 180, m. 21, I Ric. II, pt.
2 ; Chan. Inq. p.m. 7 Ric. II, no. 60.
AYLESBURY HUNDRED
WKSTON TURVILLE
TALBOT. Gulti a
Urn and * borjtr en-
grailed or.
She married Thomas, Earl of Nottingham, but died
in 1383 "* while still a minor, and her share of the
manor of Weston Butlers came to her aunt Ankaretta,
her father's sister."* Ankaretta was the wife of Sir
Richard Talbot,1" and her property came to her descen-
dants, the Earls of Shrews-
bury.'" The last time this
part of the manor can be
identified is in the inquisition
on the lands of John Talbot,
Earl of Shrewsbury, who died
seised of it in 1460,"' leav-
ing his son John, aged twelve,
as his heir. George Talbot,
the fourth carl, married Anne
daughter of William, Lord
Hayings,"0 and sister to Ed-
mund Hastings the husband of
Mary Hungerford, who held
the manor of Weston Molyns, and the fourth part of
Weston Butlers probably came into the hands of the
Hastings and passed with their manor to Lord
Windsor, who obtained both Weston Molyns and
Weston Butlers.
There is considerable obscurity in the descent of
the third knight's fee in Weston Turville after its
division among the sisters of William de Turville.
Roger Croft paid scutage for it in I 234,'" but he does
not seem to have held it in demesne, and twenty
years later it seems to have passed to Henry Hubald,1"
who held immediately of the honour of Leicester.
He was succeeded by a family of the name of
Charnclls ; in 1278 William de Turville in quit-
claimed certain messuages and lands in Weston Tur-
ville for himself and his heirs to Nicholas de Charnells
and his heirs in return for 12} marks. Nicholas held
the knight's fee in 1285.'" He was succeeded before
1296-7 by George de Charnells."* In Warwick-
shire the name is also associated with the Turvillcs
and Herdeberghs,"* so that it seemi possible that the
Charnells claimed their fee from Isabel, the third
sister of William de Turville. In 1316 John de
Longville appears as a military tenant in Weston
Turville,1" but possibly he was holding the land in
wardship for one of the Charnells. At the close of
the 1 4th century John Charnells and his wife Elizabeth
held a manor in Weston Turville, which they sold
to William Rede, clerk, and others, in I 396 for 200
marks.'" They were apparently the tenants in
demesne, but this is the last time that the Charnells
are mentioned, and the descent of their land is
lost.
The sub-manor of HIDE in Weston Turville was
held as half a knight's fee of the manor of Weston
Molyns.1" There is, however, some confusion as to
the overlordship, since in the ijth century the half
fee seems to have been held directly of the honour of
Leicester,13* and again in the reign of Henry VIII
the manor of Hide was said to be parcel of the Duchy
of Lancaster, and held of the king as of the manor of
Weston Turville.'" Except in these two instances,
however, the overlordship seems to have belonged to
the manor of Weston Molyns and the half-fee is
specially mentioned in the grant of that manor by
Nicholas de Turville to Hugh de Turpleton.1J* In
the early years of the 1 3th century Fulk de la Hide
had several lawsuits with Robert de Turville about
land in Weston Turville."* In one instance the land
in question was said to contain two hides. John
son of Fulk is also mentioned,1*4 and in the time of
Roger de Croft and Simon de Turville, Roger de la
Hide held this half-fee."* He also paid scutage for it
in 1234.'** The manor of Hide afterwards passed to
Robert Fitz Nigel, who was killed at the battle of
Evcsham.1*7 Probably his widow Grace held it after
his death, and she may have been the heiress of Roger
de la Hide. In 1265-6 she obtained lands1*" from
Alan son of Gervase of Aldermanbury by exchange,
and in 1287 "* Robert Fitz Neel also bought land in
Weston Turville from Roger le Sometur and his
wife Alice. In 1302—3'** Hide is mentioned, but
the tenant's name is not given ; in 1329, however,
Robert Fitz Neel held the half fee,1" and died seised
of messuages, lands, and of rents of free and customary
tenants in Weston Turville, leaving his daughter
Grace as his heir.'" These lands had been settled
in 1317-18 on Grace, with remainder to her son,
Robert de Nowers.14' In 1346 the holding of Grace
de Nowers in Weston Turville is described as one
hide of land held as a knight's fee of John de
Molyns.'44 Grace died about i 349,'" and her lands
passed to John son of John dc Nowers.'4* Her
capital messuage at Weston Turville was then of no
value,147 but her holding was released by the new
tenant with other possessions as the manor of Weston
Turville to King Edward III,14* Sir Ingelram Coucy,
Earl of Bedford, and his wife Isabel, the daughter of
the king.14' At this time it seems to have followed
the same history as the manor of Fenels Grove in
Great rumble,"0 and came into the possession of Sir
Robert Whitingham. He, however, gave Hide to his
brother, John Whitingham,1" who obtained a pardon
from Edward IV in 1472 and retained the manor
during the struggles of the Verneys to recover Sir
Robert's lands. John died in 1485,'* Margaret
Vcrney being his heiress,1" and in the same year Sir
u* Chan. Inq. p.m. 7 Ric. II, no. 60.
»• Ibid.
"• Ibid, i Hen. V, no. 51 (file z;6).
»" Ibid. 7 Hen. IV, no. 68 ; ibid. 8
Hen. V, no. 127 (add. not.) ; ibid. 9
Hen. V, no. 44 (file 289) ; ibid. 32
Hen. VI, no. 29.
>'• Ibid. 38-9 Hen. VI, no. 58.
110 G.E.C. Comflett Peerage.
10 Teita de tt'rvill (Rec. Com.), 262.
*" IlunJ. K. (Rec. Com.), i, 20.
'« Feet of F. Bucks. M.'ch, 6 Edw. I.
144 Feud. Aidi, i, 86.
m Chan. Inq. p.m. 15 Edw. I, no.
l- Cal. Clou, 1313-18, p. 27.
W Feud. Aidi, i, 112.
l" Feet of V. Bucks. East. 19 Ric. II.
'" Feud. Aidi, i, 98, 1 24 ; Chan. Inq.
p.m. (Ser. 2), xii, no. 36.
» Teiu lie Nevill (Rec. Com.), 145*.
ul Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), uv, no.
1 60.
"» CrJ. Clue, 1327-301 P- $*+•
•» Fine! (Rec. Com.), i, 245.
«•» Roe. de Oklat. et Fin. (Rec. Com.),
389 ; Finn (Rec. Com.), i, 245-6.
W* Teiu de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 245*-
"• Ibid. 2524.
"7 Cal. Cental. (Rnllt Ser.), i, 117.
1M Feet of F. Div. Co. Hit. 50 Hen.
III.
'" Ibid. Buck*. Trio. 15 Edw. I.
'« Feud. Aidi, i, 9».
141 Cal. Clou, 1327-30, p. 524.
111 Chan. Inq. p.m. 5 Edw. Ill (lit
369
noi. ), no. 75. Hit OTerlord wat said to
be William Botiller of Wrm, but tliit
may have been a mistake in the inquisi-
tion, since his daughter held lands of John
de Molyns, and not of the Botillers.
>« Feet of F. Bucks. Mil. 1 1 Edw. II ;
Cal. Pat. I 348-50, p. 413.
>« Feud. Aid,, i, 124.
"• Chan. Inq. p.m. 23 Edw. Ill (pt. i),
no. 81 ; Cal. Pat. I 348 50, p. 41 }.
'*• Chan. Inq. p.m. 23 Edw. Ill (pt. i)
no. 85.
»«•• Ibid.
"• Cal. And. D., A. 387. '« Ibid.
>*» Cf. Great Kimble.
"' Cal. Pat. 1461-7, p. 121.
"• Cal. Ina. Hen. AY/ I, 45.
"•Ibid.
47
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
COLET. zahlt a chtv-
eron between three hinds
tripping argent 'with three
ring: table on the che-ueron.
John Verney and Margaret petitioned Henry VII
for the recovery of her lands, including Weston
Turville.15' The manor, however, had been sold by
John Whitingham in 1483-4 to Sir Henry Colet,165
citizen and alderman of Lon-
don, and the Verneys do not
seem to have obtained it. In
1485 the manor was said to
be held of the Verneys,166 but
at the death of Sir Henry
Colet in 1 505'" it was held
of the king. It passed to
John Colet, Dean of St. Paul's,
son and heir of Sir Henry,158
and was given by him to
St. Paul's School.1" The trus-
tees of the school lands, the
Mercers' Company of London,
have held Hide I6° ever since, and they hold a court
leet at the Manor Farm, the last having been held
about twelve years ago.160a
The name of BEDGRAVE can now only be
traced in the name of a farm in Weston Turville. In
the time of Edward the Confessor, however, it was
held as a manor by Suen,161 a man of Alwin Varas,
who could sell his land. After the Norman Conquest
it was granted with Weston Turville to the Bishop of
Bayeux,16* and his sub-tenant Roger held it at the
time of the Domesday Survey. It was then assessed
at two hides of land.1" It does not seem to have
followed the same descent as the rest of Roger's lands.
In 121 1 16< Ralph Malet paid half a mark for the en-
rolment of a release by Roger de Paschedale of all
the land which the latter held of Ralph's fee in Bed-
grave. This land may probably be identified with
the half-fee held by the heirs of William Malet of
the honour of Leicester in the 1 3th century.164 The
descent of Bedgrave cannot be traced further, and it
probably was united with one of the other manors in
Weston Turville. Early in the igth century Bed-
grave Manor Farm was the property of John Newman
of Wendover.169 In 1827 it was sold by him to John
Hulbert of Stokes Hill, near Portsmouth, and in
1862 it belonged to Mr. G. A. Hulbert.167
In 1086 there were said to be four mills in Weston
Turville worth 33^. 4^.168 At the end of the
1 4th century Walter de Gayton and his wife Amice 16>
held four and a half carucates of land, a mill, and ^4
rent in Broughton and Bedgrave, which were let at
ferm to Michael of Northampton in 1276. Another
mill is mentioned in 1346-7 17° in Weston Turville.
The church of ST. MART consists
CHURCH of a chancel 306. by 1 8 ft. loin, with
a north vestry, a nave 62 ft. by 20 ft. 6 in.,
north and south aisles 9 ft. 2 in. and 9 ft. 6 in. wide
respectively, a western tower 1 1 ft. 6 in. wide, and
north and south porches. That there was a church
here in the I2th century is to be assumed, and the
present font and part of an octagonal shaft built into
the south wall of the chancel are of that date, but the
chancel arch and the three eastern bays of the south
arcade are the oldest part of the existing building,
dating from the middle of the I3th century. The
chancel was probably narrower than at present, and
seems to have been rebuilt of its present width about
1340-50, the chancel arch being widened at the
same time. About the same date a north aisle of five
bays was added, and the south aisle rebuilt and length-
ened westward by two bays to make it the same
length as the north aisle.
In the i jth century a west tower was built, pro-
jecting but slightly beyond the west wall of the nave,
and filling up the west bay of the arcades, within
which it stands. The reason for this appears to be
that the western limit of the churchyard was, as now,
too close to the west end of the building to allow of
the building of a tower wholly outside the nave in
the usual fashion ; a procession path within the
boundaries of the churchyard would not then have been
practicable, except by making an arched way through
the tower from north to south, as has been done else-
where in a good many instances. In this case the
expedient of building the tower partly within the
nave seems to have been considered the better
solution.
At the same time, or soon afterwards, a clearstory
was added to the nave, the chancel roof was height-
ened, the north aisle of the nave rebuilt, and the
north vestry (or chapel) added. The lines of the
14th-century roofs of nave and chancel are still to be
seen on the wall over the chancel arch.
The chancel has a modern east window of three
lights with flowing tracery of 14th-century design,
and in the north wall a two-light window of similar
character, but old. To the west of it is a large arch,
widened in modern times to hold the organ, leading
into the north chapel or vestry, now also used as an
organ chamber. It has a square-headed 1 5th-century
east window of two cinquefoiled lights with upright
cusped openings over, and a north door which is
modern. There are three two-light windows in the
south wall of the chancel, with modern tracery, but
old jambs and rear arches of the same date as the
north window ; the middle of the three has flowing
tracery, and the others have quatrefoiled circles in the
head. At the south-east is a very pretty 13th-century
piscina, with two drains and two pointed arches with
a pierced quatrefoiled circle in the head and engaged
shafts in the jambs. Into the same wall are built
several architectural fragments, the voussoirs of a
1 3th-century arch with dogtooth ornament, two
small armed figures of 1 3th-century date, perhaps
part of a destroyed Easter sepulchre, and the 12th-cen-
tury shaft already referred to.
The chancel arch is of rather clumsy shape of two
hollow-chamfered orders, with responds of three
engaged shafts having rather coarsely-moulded capitals.
The nave has a north arcade of five bays, the piers
being of four half-round shafts attached to a central
square, and the arches of two wave-moulded orders
with labels and drips in the form of human heads ;
the capitals and bases are semicircular and moulded.
1M Par!. R. (Rec. Com.), vi, 317.
»« Cat. Inq. Hen. Vll, no. in.
«« Ibid.
'•' Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), xix, no. 36.
"« Ibid.
159 Ibid, xxv, no. 160 ; xl, no. 6.
160 Lysons, Magna Brit, i, 66 1 j Lips-
comb, Hist, of Bucks, ii, 4.97.
1601 From information kindly given by
Mr. John Munger.
"i Y.C.H. Bucks, i, iJS«.
"» Ibid.
«» Ibid.
184 Pipe R. I 3 John, m. I d.
JM Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 245*.
169 Lipscomb, Hist, of Bucks, ii, 497.
37°
167 Sheahan, Hist, and Tofog. of Bucks.
497-
"» V.C.H. Bucks, i, 234*.
169 Cal. Pat. 1272-81, pp. 153, 178;
Feet of F. Bucks. East. 15 Edw. I ; ibid.
Trin. 17 Edw. I.
J'° De Banco R. 345, m. 136 d.
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AYLESBURY HUNDRED
WESTON TURVILLF.
The south arcade has two bays of the same description
at the west, the three eastern bays being of two
chamfered orders with a scroll label, and octagonal
moulded capitals on round columns. The third bay
is irregular, the western half of its arch being narrower
than the eastern, and belonging to the date of the
western bays, but copying the older detail. There is
also a difference in span between the ijth and
14th-century bays, the former averaging 12 ft., the
latter loft. 6 in.
The clearstory has four windows a side, each of two
cinquefoilcd lights under a square head ; they are
spaced evenly between the tower and the east wall of
the nave, and do not range with the arcades.
The north aisle opens to the north chapel by an
arch of two chamfered orders, and at its south-east
angle is the opening for the rood stair. In the north
wall are four two-light 15th-century windows, cin-
quefoiled, with square heads and spandrels ornamented
with trefoiled cusping in low relief on both faces.
Between the second and third windows it the north
doorway, a two-centred arch with continuous mould-
ings of mid 14th-century section, under a ijth-century
wooden porch whose outer four-centred archway is
partly built up on the west side. The west window
of the aisle is c. 1350, with flowing tracery and good
moulded details, of two trefoiled lights.
The south aisle has an east window of excellent
14th-century design, of two trefoiled lights with leaf
tracery in the head, and a moulded rear arch and
jambs with label. On either side are moulded image
brackets, and at the south-east a trefoiled piscina
recess with a shelf and drain, of the date of the
window.
In the south wall are four square-headed two-light
14th-century windows of the same section and detail
as the east window, but of unusual design, with cin-
quefoiled or feathered trefoiled heads and leaf tracery.
The south doorway is between the second and third
windows and is blocked up, the porch being also
blocked and used as a coal-hole. The west window
of the aisle is almost exactly like that of the north
aisle, the tracery being modern. Externally the
windows of the south aisle are a good deal made up
in Roman cement, which destroys their effect to some
extent, but in any case they are very remarkable
specimens of 14th-century tracery, of bold and
original design.
The tower is of three stages, embattled, with a
half- octagonal stair projecting on the north face, and
has square-headed belfry windows of two cinquefoiled
lights, a wide cinquefoiled light on the west in the
second stage, and in the ground stage a three-light
west window over a four-centred doorway with con-
tinuous mouldings and plain spandrels under a square
head.
The east arch is very tall, with an engaged shaft to
the inner order and a wide splayed face on either
side with continuous outer mouldings ; in the north
and south walls are four-centred chamfered arches
opening to the aisles. The west bay of the south
aisle is screened off as a vestry.
The roofs of nave and chancel are fine specimens
of ijth-century detail, but the design of the former
is inferior to the other. This has collars and arched
braces, and a wide moulded wall plate, above which
is a band of pierced cresting on which is set a line of
modern shields with painted heraldry. The nave
roof is of four bays, with tie-beams and collars with
arched braces, the spandrel* being filled with tracery
WESTON TURVILLI CHURCH FROM THI SOUTH-EAST
37'
A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
below the tie-beams only, so that the upper members
of the roof are rather empty, all the ornament being
concentrated on the lower parts. The plates, as in
the chancel, have open tracery with shields above
them, but in this case the shields are blank. In the
west bay on the north pairs of small shields take the
place of the single shields elsewhere. Both aisles
have lean-to roofs, that of the south aisle being
modern, while the other retains some of its 15th-
century timbers.
The wooden fittings of the church are all modern,
except for the traceried head of a screen at the west
end of the first bay of the south aisle ; it is of ijth-
century date, with a row of quatrefoiled circles over
cinquefoiled heads. The pulpit also is old, of lyth-
century date, with pretty low-relief bands of carving
on the styles and rails, and there are two old chairs
within the altar rails.
Just to the west of the screen head in the south
aisle is a panel of oak with an inscription in incised
letters filled in with black composition : ' Faith not
exercised so one waxeth sicke. Ano domini 1578.'
The font stands in the third bay of the south
arcade, and is a good example of the local late 12th-
century type, with a large cup-shaped bowl, fluted
below, and having a band of foliate ornament above,
with a base like an inverted scalloped capital. In
this instance there is only a single scallop on each
face, filled in with foliate ornament. In the east
window of the chancel is a half figure of our Lady
and Child in white and gold 15th-century glass, and
in the south-west window a shield of England with a
label of France ; the field is uncoloured. In the
south aisle the tracery of the east and south-east
windows is filled for the most part with original
glazing, in conventional patterns of green, brown,
and yellow. In the south-east window also is a
quarry in one of the main lights, on which is the
inscription, cut on the outer face :
Altissmo gloriosiss1"0 Optmo Max"10 Laus et honor et
prostracio H.W. 1655.
On the north wall of the chancel is the brass figure
of a man, c. 1 600, with a shield having a cheveron
between three crescents.
There are five bells, the treble by Chandler, 1700,
the second blank, the third a London bell by John
Danyell, c. 1460, inscribed ' Sit Nomen Domini Bene-
dictum,' the fourth by Joseph Carter, 1590, and the
tenor by the same founder, 1608.
The plate consists of a cup and cover paten of
1638, a flagon of 1694, given in 1697 by John
Tipping, and two standing patens of 1608, given in
that year by another man of the same name.
The first book of the registers contains the baptisms
from 1538, the marriages from 1573, and the burials
from 1676 to 1720; the second contains baptisms and
burials from 1721 to 1781, and marriages 1721-54;
the third is the printed marriage register 1754-1812,
and the fourth the baptirms and burials 1781-1812.
The advowson of the church of
JDrOWSON Weston Turville was held by William
de Turville at the close of the nth
century. In 1 206 '" he granted it to Geoffrey Fitz
Piers, Earl of Essex, with the manor for thirteen years.
On the subdivision of the lands and property of the
younger William de Turville the advowson does not
seem to have been divided, but probably was assigned
to Cecilia and her husband Roger Croft. It came in
consequence to the heiresses of Roger de Heder-
bergh,171 and passed to his daughter Ella and fron.
her to the Botillers. After the death of Edward
Botiller the advowson was held by his four sisters or
their heirs,173 each co-parcenor presenting every fourth
time.17* The whole advowson passed to the Windsors
and the Hills in the i6th and I7th centuries.174 In
1660 the Crown presented,176 and in 1678 John
Tipping.'" The year before, however, William Hill
and his wife Mary owned the advowson,178 and the
Hills probably had recently recovered it. It was
settled by William Hill in that year on his son
William, who, however, sold it in 1691 to All Souls
College, Oxford.179 The warden and fellows pre-
sented in I722,180 and are still the patrons of the liv-
ing, which is a rectory.
The lords of Weston Molyns Manor also claimed
the advowson of the church of Weston Turville,161
but it does not seem probable that they ever presented
to the benefice.
There is a Baptist chapel at Weston Turville, which
waj built in 1855.
In 1604 William Findall, as ap-
CH4R1T1ES peared from a tablet in the parish
church of Aylesbury, gave £6 I p. \d.
to be paid on Mid-Lent Sunday out of Summer Leys
in Weston Turville, out of which 6/. %d. was to be
given to the poor of Weston, the remainder being
applicable in Aylesbury.
Widow Turpin's Charity is endowed with loa.
I r. 34 p. in this parish, now let at ^22 a year, which
is distributed in bread.
The Pennant Trust.— In 1837 the Rev. Thomas
Pennant, a former rector, by deed dated 20 January
(enrolled), conveyed unto the then rector two cottages
near the rectory upon trust that the net rents and
profits should be applied in November and December
in the distribution of articles of useful clothing to
any number not exceeding six in any one year of the
poorest inhabitants of the parish, constant attendants
at divine service in the parish church.
The cottages are let at £8 a year, the net income
is usually divided equally among six poor people.
171 Cart. Antiv P.R.O., Z. 38.
i~8 Cf. manor of Weston Butlers ; Feet
of F. Bucks. Trin. 33 Edw. I.
17* Chan. Inq. p.m. 49 Edw. HI (ist
no«.), no. 17 ; Abbrtv. Rot. Orig. (Rec.
Com.), ii, 350.
*>* Coram Rege R. 582, m. 106 ; De
Banco R. 461, m. 59 ; Hitt. MSS. Com.
Rep. Various, ii, 298 ; Chan. Inq. p.m.
4 Edw. IV, no. 43 ; ibid. 38 & 39 Hen.
VI, no. 58.
>'' Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 21 Hen.
VIII ; Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccccxxxiii,
no. 46.
«• P.R.O. Inst. Bk3.
W7 Ibid.
178 Feet Of p. Buck*. Mich. 28 Chas.
II.
179 C. T. Martin, Cat. of tht Archives
of All Soul, Coll.
J8I) P.R.O. Inst. Bks.
181 Feet of F. Bucks. Mich. 14 Edw.
Ill ; Chan. Inq. p.m. 43 Edw. Ill, ]>t.
2 (ist nos.), no. 15.
372
DA
670
B9V6
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The Victoria history of the
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